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Oil spillage will damage Abkhazian beaches

By M. Alkhazashvili
Tuesday, August 26
During the aggression the Russians blew up Georgian coastguard vessels in Poti port. They would not subsequently allow Georgian special services to clean the water which was polluted by the consequent oil spillage.

Georgians consider the Russian action to be ecological terrorism, and the situation it has created is becoming critical. Experts think around 60-80 tonnes of fuel have spilled from the sunken coastguard vessels. When a boat ran aground near Batumi last summer only 500 litres of fuel leaked into the sea and it took a considerable effort to clean and purify the water then. If measures are not taken immediately the spilled oil will spread across the open sea and, as Gia Gachechiladze, Leader of the Green Party commented, the current will take it to the Abkhazian stretch of coastline, creating a long-lasting and very damaging situation across a wide area of Georgian sea.

Both Georgia and Russia are members of the Bucharest Convention, an international body formed to fight Black Sea pollution. Georgia is going to raise the question of Russia’s responsibility for the oil spillage at the coming session of this organization at the end of October.