In temporarily occupied Crimea, fuel oil pollution resulting from the December accident involving Russian oil tankers was discovered on the beaches of Lyubimovka and Orlivka, located west of Sevastopol.
Points of attention
- Fuel oil pollution in Crimea has been discovered on beaches located west of Sevastopol, following the accident of two Russian oil tankers in the Kerch Strait.
- The southwest wind is expected to increase, potentially causing the fuel oil to spread further along the coast of Crimea.
- Russian fuel oil has already reached the western coast of Crimea, affecting beaches such as Lyubimovka, Orlivka, Kacha, Balaklava, Fiolent, and others.
- The regional state of emergency has been declared in Sevastopol due to the fuel oil pollution, with efforts underway to clean up and mitigate the environmental impact.
- Oil slicks have been spotted in various areas, highlighting the widespread contamination and the ongoing cleanup operations in the affected regions.
Russian fuel oil has already reached western Crimea
Fuel oil has already been brought to the beaches of Lyubimivka and Orlivka, and this is the western coast of Sevastopol.
It is noted that according to the Crimean Department of Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring, on January 4, the southwest wind is expected to increase to 17-22 m/s in Crimea.
This means that the pollution patch that was carried westward along the Crimean peninsula by waves may now wash ashore again.
In the afternoon, it became known that fuel oil had already ended up on the beach in Kacha near Sevastopol — this is even further north than Lyubimovka and Orlivka, where fuel oil was discovered this morning.
The occupation authorities introduced a regional state of emergency in Sevastopol.
Oil slicks were spotted in Kozacha Bay, Blakytnaya Bay, Kach, Orlivka, Balaklava, on Sribny Beach, Victory Park, and on Fiolent.
There is no doubt that the rest of the Sevastopol coast has also suffered. It's just that not everywhere has access to the sea, and no one visits the rest of the territory in winter.
Fuel oil from Russian tankers pollutes Crimea
On January 2, two new areas of oil pollution were discovered in temporarily occupied Crimea after the accident of two Russian tankers in the Kerch Strait.
During monitoring in the Kerch city district, in the area of the city beach (Arshintsevskaya Spit), minor contamination of a sandy area 1.8 km long was detected. In the Leninsky district near Lake Tobechik, the total length of contamination is 2.1 km.
According to the Russian Emergencies Ministry, about 150 people and 48 pieces of equipment are involved in the elimination of the consequences of the environmental disaster. Specialists are cleaning the area and removing the soil.
