The Kuban Ministry of Natural Resources assessed the damage to wildlife following the tanker accident.

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The Ministry of Natural Resources of the Krasnodar Territory estimated the damage to wildlife following the tanker accident in the Kerch Strait at 34.22 billion rubles.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," a year after the tanker accident in the Kerch Strait, local residents are finding birds covered in oil products, and volunteers from the Zhemchuzhnaya Center continue to rehabilitate them, despite enormous debts. In January, the Zhemchuzhnaya Rehabilitation Center continued to receive birds covered in fresh fuel oil, despite no official reports of fuel oil emissions. On February 22, the rehabilitation center in the village of Vityazevo received 63 birds covered in fuel oil in just one day after the storm. Volunteers reported that they had another 200 birds undergoing rehabilitation.

The Ministry of Natural Resources of the Krasnodar Territory estimated the damage to wildlife caused by the oil spill from the Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239 tankers in December 2024 at 34 billion rubles. The damage assessment was announced in the Kuban Arbitration Court during a hearing of the claim against the owners and charterer of the tankers, RIA Novosti reported on February 24.

The claim for damages is addressed to the owner of the Volgoneft-239 vessel, Volgatransneft CJSC, the owner of the Volgoneft-212 vessel, KamaTransOil LLC, and its charterer, Kama Shipping LLC.

The agency's representative stated in court that the emergency in the Kerch Strait led to the destruction of wildlife and their habitats in the Anapa and Temryuk districts and the city of Novorossiysk. The damage caused to "wildlife species listed in the Red Book of Krasnodar Krai and other wildlife species not related to hunting and fishing activities" amounted to 34.122 billion rubles.

According to her, "wildlife" is currently dying in the aforementioned territories, as well as in wildlife rehabilitation centers, including animals listed not only in the Kuban Red Book but also in the Russian Federation Red Book.

The plaintiff's representative also added that damage was caused to the soil in a specially protected natural area, Lake Solenoye. The contaminated area of ​​this natural monument amounted to 1,336 square meters.

In addition to 34.22 billion rubles in environmental damage, the regional ministry demanded that the defendants recover 30.725 million rubles in losses to the Krasnodar Krai budget.

A representative of the Russian Prosecutor General's Office upheld the plaintiff's claim in full. A representative of Volgatransneft JSC requested that the case be transferred to the Moscow Arbitration Court for jurisdiction and that proceedings be suspended, as, according to her, the regional authority does not have the right to set its own standards for payment for environmental damage.

As a reminder, on December 15, 2024, two tankers carrying fuel oil sank in the Kerch Strait. A crew member of one of the tankers died as a result. In addition, an oil spill occurred, leading to catastrophic environmental consequences, according to the Caucasian Knot report "Fuel Oil Spill in the Kerch Strait".

Materials on the consequences of the fuel oil spill have been collected by the Caucasian Knot on the page "Eco-disaster in Kuban".