Desna River pollution reaches Kladkivka in Chernihiv region, mitigation measures are underway - Ministry of Environmental Protection

Ukrainian ecologists and local authorities continue to struggle to localize and eliminate the consequences of the pollution of the Desna River in Sumy and Chernihiv regions. The "bad water", likely from Russia, has now reached the village of Kladkivka in Chernihiv district.

Thanks to the efforts of the State Environmental Inspectorate and the State Emergency Service, artificial aeration of water bodies is being carried out to saturate them with oxygen. This aims to enhance the effect of the introduced bacteria and improve water quality, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources reported.

It is noted that the main activities are currently being carried out in the Chernihiv region, in particular in the villages of Makoshyne and Maksaky. Experts also continue to collect and dispose of dead fish (more than 12 tons have been collected in Sumy region and 6 tons in Chernihiv region).

"At present, the mass of contaminated water in the Desna River has reached the village of Kladkivka in Chernihiv region. The State Environmental Inspectorate and the State Agency of Water Resources took 26 water samples per day to analyze the pollution in laboratories. In total, almost 100 samples have been taken and relevant laboratory tests have been conducted in the last four days alone," the ministry said in a statement on the evening of August 31.

They also added that state environmental inspectors and representatives of the State Service of Ukraine on Food Safety and Consumer Protection in Sumy region have taken groundwater samples from mine wells. The results will be reported later.

In the Chernihiv region, the company continues to remind the public about the ban on swimming and fishing.

As a reminder, Ukraine has recorded large-scale pollution of the largest tributary of the Desna River, the Seim River, which flows from the Russian Kursk region. Excessive levels of harmful substances were detected in the water in Sumy and Chernihiv regions and a massive fish kill was recorded.

The State Commission on Technogenic and Environmental Safety and Emergency Situation has identified a set of measures to localize and eliminate the consequences of pollution in both water bodies. Experts are still determining the possible water hazards for Kyiv region: so far, no exceedances have been recorded in the capital, but swimming and fishing are still prohibited.

As reported, the first deputy head of the State Environmental Inspectorate, Dmytro Zaruba, revealed the probable cause of the pollution of the Desna and Seim. According to him, the main version is a failure of treatment facilities in the Russian Federation.

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