Black Sea ecosystems recovering well after oil spill — Russian Academy of Sciences
MOSCOW, April 28. /TASS/. Black Sea ecosystems are successfully recovering following a spill caused by a tanker accident in the Kerch Strait in December, the press service of the Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences told TASS.
In March, experts from the institute went on an expedition to study the consequences of the accident.
"The study of benthic communities [animals that live on the sea floor] revealed no significant changes in the natural development of benthos two and a half months after the accident. Biomass levels remained consistent with average coastal values, though species diversity was somewhat reduced. The results indicate that the ecosystem is in the early stages of recovery and that the greatest pollution is observed in the area of Anapa, not in the Kerch Strait itself," the message reads.
The research revealed a significant decrease in the concentration of pollutants in beach soil, seabed sediments and near-bottom waters – an average of 50% since the accident. This reduction is explained both by the natural leaching and weathering of pollutants and by the activity of benthic organisms and bacteria, which contribute to the purification of the ecosystem.
"The results of the expedition allow us to speak about the overall progress towards the natural restoration of the ecosystem. It is too early to draw any final conclusions. We need to continue work on monitoring the state of the sea and coastal areas," said Peter Zavyalov, the leader of the expedition and head of the Laboratory of Land-Ocean Interactions and the Anthropogenic Impact in the Institute of Oceanography of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
During the research in early March, scientists collected samples of bottom sediments, water and coastal soil in the most affected areas of the Kerch Strait off the Taman coast, including the site where the stern part of the Volgoneft-239 tanker was washed ashore, and the coastal water area of Anapa. Samples from the Taman Bay were also analyzed. All these samples were analyzed for petroleum hydrocarbons pollution as well as the composition of benthic organisms. In addition, several samples taken in the first days after the accident, including oil samples obtained directly from the damaged vessels, were examined to assess the temporal dynamics of pollution.
On December 15, the Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239 tankers were caught in a storm in the Kerch Strait area of the Black Sea. One sailor died, while the others were rescued. Emergency services reported that the tankers carried approximately 9,200 tons of fuel oil, of which about 2,400 tons leaked into the Black Sea. Divers of Russia's Emergencies Ministry have surveyed almost 3.600 square meters of the sea bottom and collected over 228 tons of oily waste at 19 sites of the beaches of Anapa and the Temryuksky district. The main remediation effort has been largely completed, but specialists of Russia's Emergencies Ministry continue to work on cleaning the Black Sea bottom from oil.
