13:07, 24 October 2025

Municipal officials have joined the cleanup of fuel oil emissions in Kuban.

Environmental activists have begun cleaning up fuel oil spills found on the seashore in Anapa and the Temryuk district. Authorities have brought in local administration staff to help. As reported by the Caucasian Knot, volunteers from the Dolphins headquarters discovered fuel oil spills this morning in the village of Veselovka in the Temryuk district, on the Bugayskaya Spit, and in the village of Blagoveshchenskaya in Anapa. Blogger Yuri Ozarovsky also confirmed reports of coastal pollution in Blagoveshchenskaya. The Kuban emergency response center did not provide any new information on the pollution situation this morning.

On October 23, Kuban authorities announced that a fuel oil slick weighing up to 900 tons was moving across the Black Sea toward the shores of Anapa and the Temryuk district. In Anapa, restoration of a protective embankment at least 13 kilometers long has begun along the main beaches. By October 23, 9 kilometers of the structure were completed.

Map of the Krasnodar Krai coastline where fuel oil spills are being found. Map: Google.maps screenshot

The extent of fuel oil pollution in southern Russia

The "Dolphins" volunteer headquarters announced today on Telegram that the fuel oil cleanup has begun. "Dolphins headquarters volunteers have arrived at the site of a newly recorded fuel oil spill off the coast of Veselovka. The current scale of the pollution is considered minor, but our principle remains the same: act immediately, without waiting for it to worsen. We have begun manually collecting the fuel oil," the publication states.

The Temryuk District Administration, together with Kuban-SPAS, is "promptly organizing the construction of protective embankments" along Lake Solenoye to prevent fuel oil from entering the reservoir, the environmental activists noted.

The Kuban operational headquarters also reported on the cleanup of the fuel oil spill today on its Telegram channel. In Anapa, work is underway at several coastal sites. "Oil spills were detected in the village of Blagoveshchenskaya near the Malakhit boarding house and the Zhara hotel – mainly small fragments of fuel oil mixed with algae," the publication states.

No fuel oil spills were recorded in the sea near the shore.

Furthermore, small fresh spills were also found on the Bugayskaya Spit. "There are isolated patches of fresh droplets of fuel oil on the spit between the village of Vityazevo and the village of Blagoveshchenskaya. No fuel oil spills were recorded in the sea near the shore," the task force reported.

In the Temryuk District, in the village of Veselovka near the Albatross beach, fuel oil fractions "up to several centimeters in diameter" are being removed. "Rescuers and municipal administration staff are involved in the work," the task force's publication noted.

A total of about 500 people are currently participating in the work in the Temryuk District and Anapa. "200 are from the Ministry of Emergency Situations, 170 from municipalities, 120 Kuban-SPAS rescuers, and 13 volunteers. 56 units of equipment have been deployed," the Kuban authorities reported.

Volunteers in Anapa have collected about half of the oil-contaminated sand that authorities reported removing, but the official reports don't even mention the volunteers' work, the Dolphins task force stated on October 19. "We're not in the reports. We're not thanked at meetings. We're not even mentioned," the environmental activists complained.

Restoration of the protective embankment in Anapa is also underway around the clock. "15 km of the planned 18 are already complete," the task force's publication stated.

As a reminder, in mid-October, volunteers and bloggers reported fuel oil emissions after a storm in Anapa and the Temryuk district. The regional task force reported that the fuel oil emissions were insignificant. Environmentalists have stated that large-scale coastal cleanups must resume.

Black Sea fuel oil pollution continues. Satellite images showed leaks from sunken tankers in August. Most of the fuel oil settled to the seabed, including in the area of Taman, Anapa, and the Bugay Spit, scientists concluded.

On December 15, 2024, two tankers carrying fuel oil sank in the Kerch Strait. A crew member from one of the tankers died as a result. In addition, an oil spill occurred, which led to catastrophic environmental consequences, according to the "Caucasian Knot" report "Fuel oil spill in the Kerch Strait".

Translated automatically via Google translate from https://www.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/416607