Sochi hosts picket against extraction of oil from Black Sea

At the embankment of the city of Sochi, a picket was held against the extraction of oil from the Black Sea and in support of the arrested Greenpeace activists, who protested against extraction of hydrocarbons from the Arctic shelf. The event was timed to coincide with the six-year anniversary of the ecological disaster in the Kerch Strait.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on November 11, 2007, the Russian tanker "Volga-Neft" broke into halves because of a heavy storm and sank. As a result of the accident, more than 1000 tons of fuel oil was spilled into the sea. More than 20 persons suffered in the tragedy.

The picket, which was held on November 10, was attended by activists from the "Ecological Watch for Northern Caucasus", members of the faction "Green Russia" of the "Yabloko" Party, and participants of the volunteer camp of the World Wildlife Fund to save birds affected by the oil spill.

"Now, six years later, the situation in the Kerch Strait is no better. The consequences of the accident have not been eliminated completely," states the report prepared by the "Ecological Watch for Northern Caucasus". Meanwhile, the ecologists emphasize that the situation in the region can still aggravate because of the joint project of the "Rosneft" and the "ExxonMobil" aimed at oil extraction from the Black Sea.