Russian scientists on Wednesday criticized authorities' response to the oil spill caused by the sinking of oil tankers between Russia and annexed Crimea, saying rescuers did not have appropriate equipment.
On December 15, two Russian tankers, Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239, ran aground during a storm in the Kerch Strait.
It separates Russia from Ukraine's Crimean peninsula, which it annexed in 2014.
The ships were carrying 9,200 tonnes of fuel oil, around 40% of which could have spilled into the sea, according to Russian authorities.
Image, taken from a video, released by the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry on December 17, 2024, showing rescuers at the site of an oil spill along the Black Sea coast, caused by the sinking of two oil tankers in the Kerch Strait between Crimea and the Krasnodar region in southern Russia / Handout / Russian Emergency Situations Ministry/AFP
Thousands of volunteers have mobilized to clean the beaches of southwest Russia, a tourist region which has seen its sand stained with sticky fuel oil.
But, according to scientists, their equipment is not sufficient.
“There are no bulldozers on site, no trucks. Virtually no technical equipment »said hydrologist Viktor Danilov-Danilian, scientific director of the Institute of Water Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences, at a press conference.
Black Sea: Russian oil spill on nearly 50 km of beach / Lise KIENNEMANN, Jean-Michel CORNU / AFP/Archives
The volunteers only have “useless shovels and plastic bags that burst”denounced Mr. Danilov-Danilian.
“While waiting for these bags to finally be collected, the storm arrives and they find themselves back in the sea. It’s unthinkable! »he said.
Any public criticism of the authorities is rare in Russia, as Vladimir Putin's regime does not tolerate it.
The oil spill could pollute up to 200,000 tonnes of soil, the Russian Minister of Natural Resources said on Monday.
Nearly 30,000 tonnes of contaminated soil have already been collected, the governor of the Russian Krasnodar region, Veniamin Kondratiev, said on Wednesday.
Image, taken from a video, released by the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry on December 17, 2024, showing rescuers at the site of an oil spill along the Black Sea coast, caused by the sinking of two oil tankers in the Kerch Strait between Crimea and the Krasnodar region in southern Russia / Handout / Russian Emergency Situations Ministry/AFP
President Vladimir Putin acknowledged last week that it was a “ecological disaster”.
Sergei Ostakh, professor at the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences and specialist in industrial ecology, estimated at the same press conference that pollution could soon reach Crimea.
“We must have no illusions that it (Crimea – editor’s note) will remain clean”he said, calling for “act as quickly as possible”.
This oil spill could have killed 21 dolphins, the specialist center Delfa estimated on Wednesday, specifying that analyzes were necessary to confirm the cause of their death.
