Shipowner Charged for Polluting Chornomorsk Waters with ₴16M Damage

Law enforcement officers have served a shipowner with a notice of suspicion of polluting the waters of the Chornomorsk seaport with more than 1.2 tons of oil products, which caused environmental damage worth almost UAH 16 million.

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

She was charged with pollution of the sea within the inland sea waters of Ukraine with substances harmful to human life and health and abuse of power (Article 243, paragraph 2, and Article 364-1, paragraph 2, of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

According to the investigation, the suspect, holding the position of the head of a private enterprise operating in the field of maritime transport, 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 its sinking. Despite being aware of the danger, she failed to provide maintenance, organize a watch service, and comply with the requirements of the port administration regarding the vessel's basing.

As a result of the failure to comply with the requirements of maritime safety and leaving the vessel without proper supervision, it sank, causing the leakage of more than 1.2 tons of residual oil products into the waters of the Chornomorsk seaport, posing a threat to human health and the marine ecosystem.

According to experts, the damage caused by the disaster is estimated at almost UAH 16 million.

Earlier, environmental inspectors managed to assess the environmental damage caused by a large-scale leak of sunflower oil into the Sukhyi Estuary in Odesa Oblast.

In October 2024, a Russian air attack severely damaged the port infrastructure of Odesa region. One of the most critical consequences was the discharge of more than 125 tons of sunflower oil into the Sukhoi Estuary.

The inspectorate explained that due to the difficulty of collecting environmental data and conducting a full analysis, the extent of the pollution has only now been assessed. Experts estimate that the total amount of environmental damage is UAH 10.9 billion.

Кирило Бойко