As a result of the collision of two Russian tankers in the Kerch Strait, about 4,300 tons of fuel oil and probably other oil products got into the water. This became another example of the negative consequences of the militarization of the Black and Azov Seas, which threatens the environment. Such information made public organization “Greenpeace Ukraine”.
Both tankers were transporting fuel for the Russian Navy. It is known that the vessel’s positioning system has been disabled for the past 12 days. According to Greenpeace, the routes of these tankers began in Volgograd and ended in the Kerch Strait, as evidenced by the tracking for October 1.
Paul Johnston, head of Greenpeace’s research laboratories based at the University of Exeter in Great Britain, warned of serious environmental consequences. He noted that the direction of the spill will depend on the wind and currents, which are currently directed to the northeast. Due to weather conditions, it will be extremely difficult to localize pollution. If fuel oil ends up on the coastline, cleaning up the contaminated areas will be a very long and difficult process.
“The spill is likely to be driven by the prevailing winds and currents currently moving to the northeast and will be extremely difficult to contain in the current weather conditions. If the pollution washes ashore, it will cause shoreline pollution that will be extremely difficult to clean up. The impact on the environment will depend on the type of oil spilled. Heavy residual oil products such as fuel oil tend to cause more noticeable impacts, including on marine fauna.” Johnston emphasized.
