After the tanker accident in the Kerch Strait, oil slicks were found along the coast of Kuban.

Residents of Russia have reported oil pollution along the coast of the Krasnodar region. It is likely that the oil is from tankers that sank in the Kerch Strait.

According to RBK-Ukraine, this was stated by the governor of the Russian region, Veniamin Kondratiev, on his Telegram channel.

Kondratiev mentioned that the pollution has stretched over several dozen kilometers—from the village of Veselovka in the Temryuk district to the stanitsa of Blagoveshchenskaya in Anapa.

"During the morning monitoring of the coastal zone, patches of fuel oil were detected. Oil products have washed ashore over a distance of several dozen kilometers," he stated.

He noted that 267 specialists and 50 units of equipment are working on eliminating the consequences of the pollution. Operational headquarters have been established in two districts—Temryuk and Anapa.

Locals are sharing photos and videos of the polluted coast, showing oil stains and affected birds.

Ukraine Assesses Damage to Black Sea Ecosystem

At the same time, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine is assessing the damage to the Black Sea ecosystem due to the fuel oil leak resulting from the accident of Russian tankers in the Kerch Strait, estimating it at over 14 billion dollars.

"Each of the involved agencies is actively working on establishing a body of evidence and assessing the scale of the ecological disaster. The main efforts are focused on documenting the facts of pollution, modeling the spread of contamination, and evaluating its impact on ecosystems," stated the Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, Svitlana Hrinchuk.

What Preceded This

Recently, two Russian tankers "Volgoneft-212" and "Volgoneft-239" sank in the Kerch Strait. The cause of the accident was a severe storm.

Subsequently, a representative of the Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Dmytro Pletenchuk, stated that Russian tankers with oil began sinking near the Kerch Strait on December 15. This occurred because they went to sea without adhering to navigation requirements.