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Fri, 13 Mar 2026

Fri, 13 Mar 2026 Can Ukraine's war-torn wheatfields be cleansed?

Researchers take 8,000 soil samples from battlefields to see if it is safe to grow crops.

* Experts from Royal Agricultural University in Gloucestershire and Sumy National Agrarian University in Ukraine have analysed soil impact.
* Fields turned into battlefields, polluted by shells, bombs, and burned-out tanks.
* Soil contaminated with toxic elements and heavy metals like cadmium, cobalt, copper, zinc, and nickel.
* 8,000 soil samples taken from fields near front lines, with results showing high levels of lead and zinc in areas where military vehicles crashed.
* Areas can still be used for farming, but need to be identified as "hotspots" and cleaned up.
* Project aims to teach farmers how to seal off contaminated areas and remediate soil.