Russian tanker sinks in Black Sea spilling tonnes of oil

More than 4,000 tonnes of oil products have sunk in the Black Sea after two Russian tankers got damaged off the coast of Crimea amid stormy conditions, threatening an ecological disaster. The Volgoneft tankers were carrying 9.2 thousand tons of fuel oil, as reported to TASS by emergency services. Officials said that one crew member died, but a rescue operation was able to evacuate the remaining sailors.
The 136-metre Volgoneft-212 tanker, carrying a crew of 13 and a cargo of fuel oil, snapped in half and had its bow torn away. The second Russian-flagged ship, the 132-metre Volgoneft-239, with a crew of 14 people, was drifting after sustaining damage, the Emergencies Ministry said. Both vessels were damaged while transiting the Kerch Strait waterway. The ministry cited "bad weather in the Kerch Strait" for the damage.
The Kerch Strait separates the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula from Russia and is an important global shipping route, providing passage from the Sea of Azov to the Black Sea. It has also been a key point of conflict between Russia and Ukraine after Moscow annexed the peninsula from Ukraine in 2014. In 2016, Moscow was taken to the Permanent Court of Arbitration by Ukraine, where it accused Russia of trying to illegally seize control of the area. In 2021, Russia closed the strait for several months. Apart from being a key route for exports of Russian grain, Kerch Strait is also used for exports of crude oil, fuel oil and liquefied natural gas.

In 2007, another oil tanker - Volgoneft-139 - split in half during a storm while anchored off the Kerch Strait, leading to more than 1,000 tonnes of oil spillage. According to Natalia Gozak, director of the Ukrainian office of Greenpeace, the effects of the 2007 spillage lasted for years, negatively impacting biodiversity and marine life. She fears the effects of this latest disaster could be just as bad, if not worse.
Commentators pointed out that the oil products, if spilled into the Black Sea, would cause serious ecological damage to a marine environment already badly affected by war.
While there haven’t been details on the extent of the spill or why the first tanker had sustained such serious damage, the ministry said that rescue teams were in contact with the ship. Russia said that more than 50 people and equipment, including Mi-8 helicopters and rescue tugboats, had been deployed to the area.



Down to Earth is Science and Environment fortnightly published by the Society for Environmental Communication, New Delhi. We publish news and analysis on issues that deal with sustainable development, which we scan through the eyes of science and environment.