A resident of Mykolaiv demands that the court stop the hyperchlorination of water

A resident of Mykolaiv went to court to stop the flushing and hyperchlorination of the city’s water supply network, but his application for interim relief was returned without consideration. The ruling was issued on October 23, 2026, by the Mykolaiv District Administrative Court in case No. 400/13378/26. According to reyestr.court.gov.ua.

The ruling concerns a lawsuit filed by a man against the Mykolaiv City Council, its Executive Committee, and Mykolaivvodokanal Municipal Enterprise. The plaintiff sought:

• A declaration that the local authorities’ failure to oversee the use of community resources and properly regulate the flushing of water supply networks was unlawful.
• A declaration that Mykolaivvodokanal’s flushing, chlorination, and hyperchlorination of the water supply system were unlawful. The plaintiff alleges that these measures are being carried out without a relevant city council decision on funding and approval of the procedure.
• An order requiring the enterprise to stop flushing and hyperchlorinating the network until a relevant decision is adopted in accordance with the law.

Along with his lawsuit, the man filed an application for interim relief, asking the court to impose temporary restrictions until the dispute was decided on its merits. In particular, he sought to suspend the decisions and orders under which these measures were being carried out, and to prohibit Mykolaivvodokanal and the Executive Committee of the Mykolaiv City Council from using elevated doses of free chlorine and its compounds.

The applicant did not provide documents confirming payment of the court fee. Instead, he attached a combat veteran’s certificate and cited the exemption provided by law.

The court explained: combat veteran status alone does not mean a person is exempt from court fees in every case. Whether the exemption applies depends on the subject matter and grounds of the lawsuit—in particular, on whether the veteran is seeking to protect their rights in the field of social security. In this case, the man is seeking to protect his right to a safe environment, and the law does not exempt combat veterans from court fees for such claims.

The court also found no grounds to defer or allow payment in installments, or to reduce the fee. The absence of proof of payment, where there were no legal grounds for an exemption, was the procedural reason for returning the application.

The ruling concerns only interim relief. The court did not consider the legality of water hyperchlorination on its merits and did not prohibit Mykolaivvodokanal from carrying out these measures.

The ruling may be appealed to the Fifth Administrative Court of Appeal within 15 days of its issuance.

Water chlorination in Mykolaiv is due to begin on November 2.

We previously reported:

• There will be three times more chlorine in the water: Mykolaiv prepares to flush its networks
• Drinking water does not always reach the taps: Reshetilov prepares to clean Mykolaiv’s networks
• Dangerous deviations in water quality found at water distribution points in Mykolaiv: residents complain of a stench and a “river-like taste”
• The entire water supply system in Mykolaiv needs to be replaced, says water utility director