The overflowing landfills in Kuban have given rise to criticism of officials.
The authorities of Kuban, who declared the overflowing landfills as temporary waste storage sites, should have organized separate collection and recycling of solid municipal waste and built new landfills without waiting for a crisis, ecologists pointed out.
As reported by "Caucasian Knot", on October 22, by the order of the governor of Kuban a state of heightened readiness was introduced in 10 municipalities related to the organization of solid municipal waste removal.
Residents of Novorossiysk have repeatedly complained about air pollution after fires at the landfill located on Mount Shchelba. In 2025 alone, the landfill caught fire at least three times, and in two cases, extinguishing took more than a month. In June 2024, the landfill in Novorossiysk burned for several days, and in August of the same year, residents again complained about acrid smoke due to a fire at the landfill. In November 2024, it became known that the landfill would be reconstructed, although it needed reclamation.
Overflowing landfills have been reclassified as temporary sites
The state of heightened readiness will be in effect during the reconstruction of landfills, the processing of permitting documents, and the creation of 10 waste processing complexes, the regional operational headquarters reported on October 28 in its Telegram channel.
"Currently, due to the exhaustion of capacity, some waste management facilities operate as temporary accumulation points, while others are subject to reconstruction, which takes a long time. The document [the governor's order] provides the administration of Krasnodar Krai with the legal opportunity to use existing landfills, thereby maintaining the current scheme of solid municipal waste movement, avoiding disruptions in waste removal schedules, and preventing deterioration of the sanitary condition of the territories," the message states.
The introduction of the heightened readiness regime in Novorossiysk, Sochi, Hot Key, Tuapse municipal district, Apsheronsky, Belorechensky, Yeysky, Kurganinsky, Starominsky, and Temryuk districts does not mean that solid municipal waste removal will be suspended, the authorities emphasized.
Waste will still be regularly removed along the same routes
"Waste will still be regularly removed along the same routes. After the necessary documents are processed, waste placed at temporary accumulation sites will be sent for disposal in accordance with current environmental and sanitary-epidemiological legislation," the publication notes.
Residents of the Poltavskaya stanitsa in the Krasnoarmeysky district have been demanding the closure of the local landfill since the beginning of 2022. They have repeatedly held protests. In November 2023, the operation of the landfill was suspended, and in December of the same year, the governor announced the closure of the facility. The official acknowledged that this was achieved thanks to the persistence of local residents and announced upcoming reclamation, without specifying the deadlines. "Caucasian Knot" has prepared a report "The struggle of Poltavskaya residents against the landfill".
An ecologist pointed out the need for separate collection of solid municipal waste
The situation was commented on by the correspondent of "Caucasian Knot" by the coordinator of the industrial ecology program at the Center for Wildlife Protection, an expert of the International Social and Ecological Union Igor Shkradyuk.
"The most dangerous situation is the burning landfill on Mount Shchelba in Novorossiysk and the avalanche of waste that fell from the landfill into the gorge. In Poltavskaya stanitsa and other places, landfills and waste truck flows have caused mass protests among residents. The authorities tried to solve the problem by building new landfills, but these projects also sparked mass protests," he said.
According to him, the overflowing landfills lead to the proliferation of rodents and insects, acrid odors, smoke, and fires. "This should be added to the flow of toxic leachate into rivers. In resort cities, landfills also reduce the attractiveness of the area for vacationers, as in Novorossiysk near Mount Shchelba, where a stream of waste rolled down into the nearby gorge," the ecologist said.
On average, about 40% of recyclable fractions are in solid municipal waste
He believes that the volume of waste generated should be reduced. "The best means for this is separate collection of solid municipal waste. First of all, it is necessary to reduce the entry of the most voluminous waste, plastic and glass bottles, to landfills by organizing collection bins for bottles, especially at the exits from beaches. On average, about 40% of recyclable fractions are in solid municipal waste, but only a third of them is extracted during sorting. Paper soaked with juice from food waste is no longer suitable for recycling. The volume and danger of food waste can be reduced by processing them into compost and biogas," Shkradyuk believes.
In his assessment, the problem should have been addressed "10 years ago", and now it will take "years" to fix the situation. "And for now, the priority task is to prevent residents, businesses, and solid municipal waste operators from dumping waste anywhere. Because even such a dangerous landfill as on Mount Shchelba causes less harm to nature than the same amount of waste scattered around Novorossiysk," the ecologist said.
In his opinion, the introduction of the heightened readiness regime was an attempt by the regional administration to manually and bypassing standard environmental norms legalize the excessive import of waste to already exhausted facilities. However, without launching a real system of separate waste collection and organic recycling, the introduced regime may become permanent.
On January 1, 2019, the main stage of the waste reform began in Russia. In Krasnodar Krai, the transition to a new system of solid municipal waste management was postponed for a year – to January 1, 2020. At the same time, it was implemented in stages: by the beginning of 2020, four regional operators began work according to approved tariffs. The reform provided for the transfer of responsibility for the collection, transportation, processing, disposal, neutralization, and burial of waste to regional operators selected through a competition. In addition to changing the waste removal and payment system, it was planned to develop separate collection, sorting, and recycling of waste, reducing the amount of waste going to landfills.
Activists from Novorossiysk criticized the authorities for prolonged inaction
Member of the environmental council of Novorossiysk Tatyana Tribrat also believes that the authorities should have addressed this problem long ago.
Four years have passed, but nothing has been done
"Yes, we know about this order, we were surprised that it appeared only now. We have been sounding the alarm for many years, at least we have been actively dealing with this for four years. We shouted, spoke, demanded that a new site be chosen for the future landfill and that it be prepared for a new landfill, because the situation was supposed to become critical in a year and a half. Four years have passed, but nothing has been done. And this is the case for all landfills in the region!" she told the correspondent of "Caucasian Knot".
Now, in her assessment, a "critical moment" has arrived. "When old landfills are overflowing, and no new landfills are being built, and this problem is not being solved in any modern way. The fact is that somewhere in 2022–2023, operators from other regions came in, ready to build new modern complexes, six sites were sought for them, it seemed they were agreed upon... And then at some point the governor abandoned this project. Why? What happened? No one knows," Tatyana Tribrat said.
Eco-activist Zhanna Mingelevich from Novorossiysk believes that "it is time to hold regional officials criminally liable" for their "inaction".
"Since 2019, activists have been shouting about the condition of these landfills. But we have constantly been deceived about the fact that they are actively looking for new landfill sites. In fact, there are no free areas in the region, except for 20 hectares of forest fund near Mount Shchelba in Novorossiysk. They still cannot separate dry and wet waste. Recycling has been killed. What the management of the landfill "Terra-N" is doing now is also just a band-aid on a dead person. Let them allow public activists to manage, we will restore order faster," she told the correspondent of "Caucasian Knot".
In May 2025, Rosprirodnadzor filed a lawsuit against the owner of the landfill at Mount Shchelba (LLC "Terra-N"), claiming non-compliance with environmental protection requirements in waste management. During the fire at the landfill, specialists found traces of leachate in the forest near the landfill, in the Bezimenka stream and the Ozerka river. In July 2026, the court in Novorossiysk fined "Terra-N" 19 million rubles. The company was found guilty of polluting the river and stream.
There should be a planned collection of secondary raw materials, including at enterprises
Mingelevich also believes that the main thing is to reduce the volume of solid municipal waste sent to landfills. "First of all, there should be a planned collection of secondary raw materials, including at enterprises. The USSR had a very positive experience. It is better to invest 10 kopecks per kilogram in the collection of secondary raw materials today than to spend billions of rubles on eliminating the consequences tomorrow. Secondly, large stores should definitely be required to open collection points for secondary raw materials on their premises. They are the ones who bring packaging from all over the world to the city," the activist stated.
A member of the environmental council under the governor Andrey Rudomakha refused to comment to the "Caucasian Knot", suggesting to contact a colleague on the council under the governor.
"It is better to ask all questions on this topic to Evgeny Vitishko. He is our media relations specialist," Rudomakha advised the correspondent of "Caucasian Knot". Evgeny Vitishko did not respond to the questions of the correspondent of "Caucasian Knot" at the time of preparing the material.