Desna and Sejm pollution: oxygen and some metals still not normal, situation improved in Chernihiv area
Kyiv • UNN
The pollution of the Desna River has spread to 191 km from the confluence of the Sejm. In Chernihiv, the situation has improved, but the content of oxygen and some metals in the water has not yet returned to normal.
Water pollution has spread 191 kilometers from the confluence of the Seim into the Desna River. In the Chernihiv area, the situation is improving, but the content of oxygen and some metals in the water still does not reach the norm, the Ministry of Environment reported on Tuesday, UNN writes.
Details
"As of the morning of September 10 , the pollution has moved approximately 191 km (near the village of Shestovytsia) from the confluence of the Seim River into the Desna. During visual inspection, the contamination is recorded in spots and does not have a homogeneous character. In the vicinity of the village of Shestovytsia, there is a darkening of the water, a specific odor, accumulation of small fish under the shore, and isolated cases of fish death. Downstream, no signs of pollution have been recorded," the report says.
According to the Ministry of Environment, "the situation has improved and there are isolated cases of fish deaths in the Chernihiv area.
"In general, the process of moving pollution along the Desna River in Chernihiv Oblast continues. The worst indicators are recorded in the village of Boromyky and the city of Chernihiv," the statement said.
It is reported that the dissolved oxygen content in the Desna River near the village of Boromyky has dropped to 0.26 mgO2/dm³ (the norm is 4 mgO2/dm³). And in the section of the Desna between the villages of Velyke Ustia and Kladkivka, the dissolved oxygen content is reported to have normalized.
The manganese content is 3.8-8.4 times higher in the villages of Pekariv, Boromyky, and Chernihiv. The content of total iron in the villages of Boromyky and Chernihiv is 2.3 times higher, the Ministry said.
At the same time, they note that "the excess of manganese is typical for this time of year." "Natural factors cause some specific features of water resources in Chernihiv region. Many rivers are characterized by an increased content of iron and manganese in the water, which is natural," the agency said.
"The increase in total iron, manganese, and ammonium nitrogen is the ecosystem's response to the overall ecological condition of the river. The increase in manganese in the water may also be caused by an increased content of humus compounds due to high air temperatures and a decrease in oxygen conditions," the ministry added.
"We would also like to inform you that no exceedances of pesticides, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds, or heavy metals were found in the Seim and Desna rivers," the statement said.
In the Seim River in Sumy and Chernihiv regions, the situation is reportedly "gradually improving, with dissolved oxygen content slowly increasing, but still below normal.
"Over the past day, the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection, together with the State Inspectorate of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection and local authorities, collected and disposed of 25 kg of dead fish in Chernihiv. No cases of fish freezing have been recorded in Sumy region," the statement said.
