Oil spill cleanup continues on Estonia's north coast next week
Pollution has washed up along Estonia's north coast in Lääne-Viru County and the cleanup operation will continue next week, as it was not possible to remove everything on Saturday.
On Friday, it was reported that oil and garbage had washed ashore on Estonia's northern coast, likely from Russian "shadow fleet" vessels at anchor nearby.
There is no sign of a large-scale mazut spill, but small sticky lumps can be found along the shoreline all the way from Käsmu to Kunda.
On Saturday, volunteers worked in the rain to clear the pollution at Suureliiva in Vainupea, around 100 kilometers east of Tallinn. The popular beach spot is near Lahemaa National Park.
Environmental Board inspectors also sent cleaners to other locations.
"The aim is still to reach Käsmu, where pollution is also known to be present. There is also pollution in Lobi, locals said. We want to reach a few more areas—it may go on until evening. The pollution has also spread to Kunda, which we will not reach today," said Marit Mändmets, lead inspector for the eastern region of the Environmental Board, told evening news show "Aktuaalne kaamera."
Volunteers from Ida-Viru County helped to clear the pollution for the first time. Their usual activities include searching for missing persons and rescuing animals
"We would like to clean everything up. So that animals do not get hurt. And we would like this not to happen again. But for some reason, I doubt that," said Anna Lillepärg, a volunteer with NGO Iga Elu.
The Rescue Board handed out equipment, some of which was acquired from the State Forest Management Center.
The volunteers could not clean up all the pollution in a single day. Mändmets said the Rescue Board and Environmental Board will continue the work next week.
Drone debris, likely from Ukrainian drones following attacks on Russia's Baltic ports, has also been found in the area. "In Altja, there are two drone pieces, which we will report to the Rescue Board," she said.
Following Ukraine's attacks on Russian ports, oil tankers waiting to collect their cargo have been anchored in the Baltic due to delays. At the start of this month, the number of ships off Estonia was close to 40, but the number had dropped to 20 by last week.
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Editor: Helen Wright, Mari Peegel
Source: Aktuaalne kaamera
