Sowing time is active, even in conditions of dry season. But for water conveying farmers need to pay additional payment. The Government tells that this money is for monitoring of irrigation fields' conditions and advisor services.

UAC representatives from Kherson and Mykolaiv regions tell Agravery.com periodical about waste of millions because of compulsory items in the contracts.

In Kherson region such an additional payment is 1,4 kopeck for 1 cubic meter of water. In Mykolaiv region it’s 5 kopecks. These items are placed into the water conveying contracts, that is why agrarians are obliged to accept such conditions because they can stay without water for their fields.

In Kherson region AE “Svitanok” needs about 12,5 million cubic meters of water per year. Besides, the main supplier of water from the Dnieper, there are services from Basin Management of Water Resources (BMWR) of the Lower Dnieper in the contract. Every year a farm needs to pay 176 thousand UAH for humidity monitoring from BMOR – rate is 1,4 kopeck for 1 cubic meter of water.

“Water necessity depends on the weather. During the last 2 years we took notice humidity deficit, that is why we need water conveying. For example, this year we have pumped water for a month. Previously, we had an opportunity to pump water only from the middle of May. We don’t need services for 1,4 kopeck from BMWR. Even very lazy person can find the information about soil condition in the Net. At our farm we use technology for atmospheric condensation measuring: we know everything about evaporation of water, about all precipitations and can calculate everything ourselves. For the last years, BMWR gave us nothing. They just say we need to sign the contract. If we don’t sign it – we won’t get water.” – LLC “Svitanok” owner Serhii Maksymenko tells us.

Also agrarian added, that he had to do this because he hadn’t other sources for water conveying. Estimating 1,4 kopeck for non-existing service from BMWR – it’s 15 million UAH (only talking about Kherson region). Colleagues from Mykolaiv region have almost the same situation, but in this region they need to pay 5 kopecks for 1 cubic meter of water.

Contract with four parties

To get water from the Dnieper for AE “Prometei – Servis” they are obliged to sign the contract every year. In addition to agrarian you can find there:

1. Inhulets Flume Management Organization
2. Snihurivsk Interdistrict Organization of Water Management
3. Vitovsk Water Management Organization
4. Regional Office of Water Resources (ROWR)

And a lot of questions agrarians from Mykolaiv region have especially for ROWR. According to the contract, ROWR has to provide services for farmers about monitoring of ecological meliorative condition of irrigating soil. This service costs 5 kopeck for 1 cubic meter of water. 19 districts have fields with a total area about 190,3 thousand hectares.

“They want to get additional 5 kopeck from each cubic meter of water. “Prometey-Servis” use 5 million cubic meters of water for year, so I need to pay additional 250 thousand UAH. Talking about our region, which needs 50 million cubic meter of water – it’s 2,5 million UAH. We even can agree with new contracts without regard to money. We just want to know on what account? They made the item in the contracts about additional advisor services, as if it’s soil analysis. Under the guide of such services they can get billiards.” – the owner of the LLC “Prometei-Servis” Mykhailo Liubchenko tells us.

Farmers complain that the last year payment for such advisor services was 3 kopeck. And nobody knows why in Mykolaiv region we have 5 kopecks. The other thing, how and why tariffs are connected with cubic meters of water. Because the same document from other organization costs from 500 to 700 UAH.

“Advisor service - it’s when I need it. I go to the organization, pay money and get this information. But here we have this service connected with cubic meters of water and, as a fact, we don’t get it. That is just robbery in a broad day light. We began to fight with ROWR to get us off the contract, but they told us that they wouldn’t give us an important statement that we should have to sign the contract for water conveying. Such a document we can get in the other organization, which does research about water conveying. But in ROWR they don’t admit documents from the other organizations. They explain that it can be fabricated.” – owner of “Tekhnologia-Agro” Oleksandr Klepach tells us.

The Government silence

Agrarians from Kherson and Mykolaiv regions separately and together addressed to the Government, Antimonopoly Committee, Ministry for Development of Economy, Trade and Agriculture of Ukraine, State Agency of Water Resources with a request to take in the situation. For now, we don’t have the answer from the Government.

“BMWR of the Lower Dnieper doesn’t have technological opportunities to give such services, connected with transfering and pumping of water with usage of water collectors for agricultural crops irrigation. They don’t have and can’t service meliorative equipment and water collectors. They also don’t have and don’t use technologies for water assessment, that is why agrarians don’t get any services from BMWR and continue to lose money because of paying services that were factitious made.” – it’s the information from Kherson region agrarians.

Agrarians from Mykolaiv region in their statement accused the Chairman of ROWR in Mykolaiv region Oleksandr Khlan of enforced statement for unnecessary services.

Complimented by dry season in this year all over Ukraine, especially in the south, we will have only crops from fields that were irrigated – in this year this situation connected with country food safety. Oleksandr Khlan doesn’t think about that. He thinks only how to get illegally almost 3 million UAH (it’s only from 1 region) and spend them at his pleasure.” – agrarians from Mykolaiv region mention in their letter to the Government.

Soil salinization is a cover for tax payment

Agravery.com periodical sent the information inquiry to the State Water Resources Agency, ROWR in Mykolaiv region and BMWR of the Lower Dnieper with a request to explain the payment, but didn’t get an answer.

During the telephone conversation the Chairman of ROWR in Mykolaiv region Oleksandr Khlan told us that the tariff was well-pleaded and was aligned with law demands.

“As a rule, huge land users lease the land, agrarians are there temporarily, but land will always be there. If they salinize soil - it can harm it a lot. We had such a situation many times and you can find the information on our website. We make our state function of water monitoring, drainage water and its level and we also take the gauge of soil salinization. Tariff calculation for this is clear. We are state-funded and non-profit organization. We don’t demand any illegal money, just ask agrarians to obey the law of Ukraine and pay value according to the calculation due to all state-funded instructions of the organization. Link to the tariff calculation going to be in the answer to your inquiry.” - Oleksandr Khlan explains.

ROWR doesn’t afraid of investigations

According to his words, ROWR of Mykolaiv region works clear and doesn’t afraid of any investigations about money usage. He lends credence to the information about non-admission of soil condition documents from other organizations.

“We can buy higher education diplomas even in subway in our country. If agrarians give me a document from other organization, I won’t have any reasons to trust it. The second thing is about observing system that we have in the balance sheet and also we have engineer unit for it. This system consists of fountains with special pipe and we take water for analysis from it. If in the laboratory there is such a system in the line of water canals and in the irrigation fields, if they have working procedure, so please, do this. That is not enough just to get some water from it. This is a complex monitoring.” – the Chairman of ROWR tells.

Service provision about water and soil monitoring Oleksandr Khlan calls "water conveying complex work". But now it is payed according to the different accounts.

“Yes, we also give recommendations about deviation of soil salinization. Unfortunately, these are all our functions, but State Water Agency reorganization continues. We don’t have canals in our balance, other departments do this. That is why we have different juridical persons and different accounts. They pay money for water conveying to the special organization, but we get money for the monitoring. Most likely, in the future, it is going to be only one juridical person and one account for water conveying services.” - Oleksandr Khlan adds.