OREANDA-NEWS. August 13, 2008. The Cabinet of Ministers is planning to ban the production of gravel in Carpathian rivers, if such production is not linked to the holding of restoration works, Ukrainian First Deputy Premier Oleksandr Turchynov said at a briefing in Ivano-Frankivsk.

He said that according to experts, the hydrodynamics of Carpathian rivers had changed over the last years, including due to the uncontrollable production of gravel. At the same time, he said that mass volumes of gravel are currently needed for restoration work.

"Therefore, I tasked local administrations to stop any production not linked to the restoration work," Oleksandr Turchynov said.

He also said that if needed, the government is ready to draft a respective bill of amendments to the Ukrainian laws.