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Investigators are considering three versions of hazardous emissions in the north of the occupied Crimea.
Ukrainian police investigators believe that Russia could deliberately arrange an environmental disaster in the Crimea with a view to creating a massive information campaign against Ukraine.
In general, the police consider three versions of hazardous emissions in the annexed Crimea and the adjacent Kherson region (mainland Ukraine).
Criminal proceedings have been opened under part 1 of Article 241 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (air pollution).
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Currently, investigators are interrogating witnesses, filing requests with the competent authorities regarding possible sources of pollution, as well as with medical institutions regarding people's health complaints.
Main versions of air pollution by sulfur dioxide and sulfur oxide include:
- It was linked with violations of safety regulations at plants located in the north of Crimea ("Crimean Titan," "Crimean Sodium Plant," and "Crimean Bromium Plant");
- It was a result of the damage inflicted to the waste tank at the plants "Crimean Titan," "Crimean Sodium Plant," and "Crimean Bromium Plant" during Russian military exercises;
- It was aimed at setting up a massive information campaign against Ukraine to destabilize the situation in the south of Kherson region by organizing rallies involving those dissatisfied with the environmental situation on both sides of the de-facto border, with requirements to unblock the dam on the North Crimean Canal and to resume the supply of water to the temporarily-occupied Crimea to end the technogenic disaster in the region.
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As UNIAN reported earlier, on the night of August 24 in the north of the Crimea, toxic chemicals were released in the air.
Ukrainian journalists tracked down former employees of the Crimean Titan plant, who provided their vision of why a chemical disaster occurred.
The reason lays in grave violations of the technology process to dispose of hazardous substances – leftovers of titanium production, TSN reported.
"For three years, hydrolysis acid has been drained into settling reservoirs in full violation of technology," ex-worker of Crimean Titan plant, Oleksandr Ivashchenko, said in an interview with TSN.
"Water is not the main factor," he added. "No amount of water is able to dissolve those volumes of acid to a neutral level."