15 kilometres of coastal strip of Azov Sea are contaminated with fuel oil. One of spots is moving towards Mariupol. PHOTO
Recently, a concentrated oil slick of 300 square kilometres was discovered in the Sea of Azov.
This was reported by Censor.NET with reference to the Mariupol City Council.
Since mid-January, the clean-up of fuel oil from Russian tankers in the Sea of Azov has been underway. Currently, 15 kilometres of the Azov Sea coastal strip are contaminated with fuel oil.
"The occupiers have removed about 18 tonnes. However, the fuel oil was spotted again. In particular, it is moving in the direction of Mariupol," the statement said.
Also the day before, the Berdiansk Military Administration reported that 15 km of the territory of Kos had been polluted as a result of the release of lubricants on the Berdiansk coast.
On the morning of 3 February, the Russian Emergencies Ministry reported that new cases of point emissions of oil products had been recorded at 19 sites along the Black Sea coast.
The accident of Russian tankers
On 15 December, two Russian oil tankers, "Volgoneft-212" and "Volgoneft-239", began to sink near the coast in the Kerch Strait. The accident was caused by a severe storm. One of the tankers was cut almost in half by the waves.
On 21 December, a state of emergency was declared in Kerch because of fuel oil from Russian tankers that had been shipwrecked in the Kerch Strait.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Environment noted that fuel oil could reach the Sea of Azov by 27-29 December. Protected areas, including the Opuk Nature Reserve and the "Cape Takil" Landscape Park, are under threat.
On 27 December, it became known that Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a state of emergency of federal significance due to a fuel oil spill in the Black Sea after two tankers had crashed.
On 4 January 2025, a state of emergency of regional significance was declared in Sevastopol in the occupied Crimea due to fuel oil spills found on the shore.
On the morning of 11 January, it became known that at least 60 dolphins had died as a result of a fuel oil spill in the Black Sea.
On 13 January, a concentrated oil slick of 300 square kilometres was spotted in the Sea of Azov in the Kerch Strait, stretching for almost 100 kilometres along the Bilosaray Bay.
On 24 January, the first signs of contamination by Russian fuel oil from tankers were found on beaches in Odesa region. Fuel oil stains were found a few metres from the coastline.
On the same day, the Sevastopol "authorities" introduced a "federal emergency" due to the effects of fuel oil emissions after the oil tanker accident in the Kerch Strait.
