In the Ternopil region, a court has ordered the return of land with a pond to the state, valued at nearly ₴4 million

In the Ternopil region, the prosecutor’s office secured the return to state ownership of a water fund land plot covering nearly 110 hectares and valued at 3.9 million hryvnias. The Western Commercial Court of Appeals upheld the decision of the court of first instance, which had ruled in favor of the claim filed by the Specialized Environmental Prosecutor’s Office of the Ternopil Regional Prosecutor’s Office against the Berezhany City Council.

The disputed land plot contains a pond as well as state-owned hydraulic structures. At the same time, the land had been classified as municipal property of the Berezhany City Council.

As the prosecutors explained, the presence of state-owned hydraulic structures on the plot precludes the possibility of this land being classified as municipal property.

Since the state is the owner of the structures, it—and not the local government—has the right to own and manage the pond and the land beneath it.

Previously, the Commercial Court of Ternopil Oblast granted the prosecutors’ claim and ordered the land plot to be returned to its rightful owner. In addition, the court revoked the state registration of the municipal ownership right to this land.

The Berezhany City Council disagreed with the decision and appealed it. However, the Western Commercial Court of Appeals upheld the prosecutor’s office’s position and left the first-instance decision unchanged.

Thus, the court’s decision to return nearly 110 hectares of water reserve land, valued at 3.9 million hryvnias, to the state remains in effect.

This was reported by the prosecutor’s office.