Mass illegal water pumping to Bukovel hotels recorded in Carpathian National Park

A schematic system for pumping natural water was discovered on the territory of the Carpathian National Nature Park. Journalists monitored one of the springs for several weeks, where powerful pumps filled water tankers daily. The vehicles transported the resource to hotel complexes in Bukovel, where drivers were handed cash.

After law enforcement was called, the pumping equipment was seized, and the tankers were reportedly sealed. However, the question of who organised this business and on what legal basis remains open.

The scale of the "water conveyor"

The reserve has hundreds of natural springs, but one of them attracts attention due to the presence of two powerful pumps and a queue of water tankers. According to observations, six vehicles arrived at the spring within just one hour, each taking at least six tonnes of water. The working schedule ran from 8 am to 8 pm.

Journalists also recorded a violation of sanitary norms: one of the drivers urinated a few metres from the water pumping site, which was then supplied to hotels.

Calculations show that 7–8 vehicles arrived at the spring every 40–60 minutes, and the working day lasted 12–13 hours. If the tanker capacity is approximately 10 cubic metres, between 840 and 1,560 cubic metres of water could have been removed from the national park per day. For comparison, the volume of an Olympic swimming pool is approximately 2,500 cubic metres. Thus, an amount of water equivalent to one-third to more than half of such a pool disappeared from the reserve daily.

Legal aspect: unauthorised activity in the reserve

Lawyer Daryna explains that pumping water for further sale is classified as special water use under Articles 48–49 of the Water Code of Ukraine. Within the nature reserve fund, this is permitted only with a permit issued in accordance with Article 9-1 of the Law "On the Nature Reserve Fund of Ukraine". Without such a document, the activity is prohibited.

The park administration does not have the authority to issue such permits, as it is a nature conservation institution, not a licensing body. Special use of resources is possible only within the limits approved by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources.

Route to Bukovel and financial flows

Following one of the tankers, journalists reached the end point of the route — a hotel in Bukovel. There, they saw another truck near a neighbouring facility, where cash was handed to the driver. Bukovel, being one of the country's largest tourist centres, consumes huge volumes of water daily, creating demand for such a service.

Anonymous sources, who identified themselves as employees of the water intake point, claim that one such facility can generate around $20,000 a month. They name individuals between whom the funds are allegedly distributed: Stepan Hoshovskyi, the director of the Carpathian National Nature Park, and entrepreneur Bohdan Vasylykov, the husband of Polianka Village Council secretary Khrystyna Vasylykova. The editorial team has no documentary evidence of these claims, and no procedural decisions regarding these individuals in connection with the water intake are known.

Police reaction and "the director knows"

During a second visit, journalists again documented the pumping process and the handover of cash. After the police were called, vehicle movement stopped. A man wearing a Carpathian National Park vest, who had previously operated the barrier, received a phone call, after which he blocked the entrance and disappeared.

He was later found. He denied working at the national park, despite video from the same day showing him opening and closing the barrier. When asked who controls access, the man gave no clear answer, only repeating several times: "The director knows". He did not explain which director he meant.

The lawyer notes that restricting access to a reserve zone for security purposes is legal. However, blocking access to a spring of general water use without a corresponding zoning decision is arbitrary. Such actions can be challenged in court or through non-judicial means.

Police inspected the scene and seized the pump. Journalists filed a report, so law enforcement must now investigate the organisers. Such actions carry administrative liability under Article 91 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offences ("Violation of rules for the protection and use of territories and objects of the nature reserve fund"). Criminal liability under Article 242 of the Criminal Code ("Violation of water protection rules") is also possible.

Representatives of the State Ecological Inspection arrived at the scene but were unable to immediately inspect the park's activities. Inspectors explained that the Carpathian National Nature Park is an economic entity, and an inspection requires separate approval from the ministry.

Connection to an entrepreneur and previous incidents

Media link the water intake to entrepreneur Bohdan Vasylykov, whose registered business activities include NACE code 36.00 "Collection, treatment and supply of water". His wife Khrystyna Vasylykova's 2024 declaration lists over UAH 9.5 million in her husband's business income, as well as the ownership of several trucks, including a MAN TGS 18.440. The editorial team has not established whether the tankers seen near the spring belong to him.

This is not the first story surrounding the park's leadership. This summer, Stepan Hoshovskyi publicly stated that the park would not develop routes for off-road driving, as the law prohibits the movement of jeeps and quad bikes on reserve territory. It is all the more important to know who enforces compliance with these rules on the ground.

In December 2022, the State Bureau of Investigation was investigating a criminal case regarding illegal logging in the Carpathian National Park. Employees of the Yamyanka Nature Conservation Research Department were involved in the case. One inspector was charged under Part 2 of Article 364 and Part 4 of Article 246 of the Criminal Code, with environmental damage estimated at over UAH 426,000. Hoshovskyi had no procedural status in that case; he was appointed director in August 2022.

The Carpathian National Nature Park is subordinate to the ministry, where Deputy Minister Oleksandr Krasnolutskyi coordinates the nature conservation territories department. He commented on the off-road driving situation this year. Thus, questions about events in the national park are addressed not only to the director.

Parties' positions

After the pump was seized, journalists contacted the police with questions regarding the registration of the report and the investigation. According to information from the local unit, the tankers are currently standing sealed, and a lock is hanging on the barrier near the spring.

The situation remains unclear: water was regularly transported from the national park to Bukovel, but it is unknown who exactly organised this process and whether there was a permit for it. Answers must be provided by the police, the park administration, and the Ministry of Environmental Protection. It is also unknown whether the "water conveyor" will resume once law enforcement attention shifts to other issues.