Ship owner suspected of oil pollution in Odesa region

In Odesa region, oil products from a ship have also entered the sea. Photo: Odesa Regional Prosecutor's Office

A shipowner from Odesa region is suspected of polluting the waters of the seaport «Chornomorsk» with more than 1.2 tonnes of oil products.

This was reported by the Odesa Regional Prosecutor's Office.

According to the investigation, the head of a private maritime transport company purchased a bunker in 2021, but did not take care of its proper maintenance and safe operation.

«The shipowner ignored warnings about the vessel's emergency condition and the high risk of sinking. Despite being aware of the danger, she did not provide maintenance, did not organise a watch service and did not comply with the requirements of the port administration regarding the vessel's basing», the statement said.

It is noted that due to the failure to comply with the requirements of maritime safety, the vessel sank, causing the leakage of more than 1.2 tonnes of residual oil products into the waters of the seaport «Chornomorsk». Experts estimated the environmental damage at almost 16 million hryvnias.

The suspect was charged with pollution of the sea within the internal sea waters of Ukraine with substances harmful to human life and health and abuse of power under Article 243 (2) and Article 364-1 (2) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

As a reminder, the water in the Mykolaiv seaport where the ship sank is contaminated with oil products. According to the results of the research, the content of oil products was 15-16 times higher.