An art project about the Black Sea's ecocide has been launched in the Odesa region

Maria Vasilyeva, a student at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague, together with her father, Nikita Moiseev, has begun work on a sculpture project about the deaths of Black Sea dolphins in the “Tuzly Estuaries” National Park. The initiative aims to draw attention to the consequences of Russian aggression and to preserve the memory of the animals that fell victim to the war.

Nikita Moiseev announced this on social media. 

As part of the preparation for the installation, the team worked directly with the remains of the deceased cetaceans—skulls and skeletons. All of these materials are being preserved for the future creation of a Pantheon of Remembrance within the park.

Due to explosions, as well as the use of powerful sonar by Russian military ships, dolphins suffer acoustic trauma. The disoriented animals lose their sense of direction, stop hunting, are blown up by mines, and die en masse. The sea regularly washes their bodies ashore.

Vegetable oil was also found within the national nature park; it had entered the Black Sea following a Russian strike on the port of Chornomorsk in April. A few weeks after the attack, the oil reached the coast of the “Tuzly Estuaries.” The oil was found in various areas of the sandbar, including the national park’s protected zone. The total area of contamination at that time was approximately 10,000 square meters.

Ivan Rusev, an ecologist and national park employee, noted that the pollution affected more than just the sand. The oil reached some inland lakes, polymerized, and settled at the bottom. After severe storms, it was covered by sand, so the contamination was no longer visible on the surface of the sandbar. However, during a routine monitoring of dead dolphins, experts once again detected vegetable oil in an isolated lake on the sandbar within the protected area.

Despite nighttime shelling, drone flights, fires, and contamination of the area with ammunition debris, the teamfrom the “Tuzly Estuaries” National Nature Park, led by Iryna Vykhrystiuk, continues to monitor environmental conditions, collect water and air samples, and document environmental crimes.

Юлія Калабайда