Oil has been detected again in the "Tuzly Estuaries" following the Russian attack

Vegetable oil that spilled into the Black Sea following the Russian strike on the port of Chornomorsk in April has once again been detected within the Tuzly Estuaries National Nature Park.

This was reported by Ivan Rusev, an ecologist and employee of the national park.

According to him, following the Russian Federation’s attack on the port of Chornomorsk on April 26, 2026, approximately 6,500 metric tons of sunflower oil spilled into the sea. The Odesa Regional Prosecutor’s Office subsequently opened a criminal investigation under Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

A few weeks after the strike, the oil reached the coast of the “Tuzlivski Limany” National Park. It was found in various areas of the sandbar, including within the national park’s protected zone. The total area of the contaminated sandbar at that time was about 10,000 square meters.

Rusev notes that the contamination affected more than just the sand. The oil reached some of the inland lakes, polymerized, and settled on 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 recent survey of dead dolphins, experts once again detected vegetable oil in a cordoned-off lake on the sandbar within the reserve’s protected zone.

According to the ecologist, this indicates a long-term process of cleansing aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems from the effects of pollution and its negative impact on biodiversity.

Rusev also recalled another incident of coastal pollution. On December 20, 2025, an oil spill occurred as a result of a Russian strike on port infrastructure near the Port of Pivdennyi. About a month later, a significant number of birds that had died from the pollution washed up on the shores of the “Tuzly Estuaries,” and large sections of the sandbar were covered in oil.

Андрій Колісніченко