Oil Spill Reported In Russia's Far Northern Nenets Region

Russian state media have reported that an estimated 10 tons of oil have leaked from a depressurized well in the Nenets Autonomous Region, north of the Arctic Circle.

The June 8 leak occurred at the Dyusushevsky oil field, and specialists from the Rostekhnadzor state inspection agency were reportedly able to stop the oil flow.

The cause of the leak was not specified.

The Interfax news agency reported that bad weather was preventing helicopters from reaching the accident site to begin a cleanup operation.

The incident comes less than two weeks after some 20,000 tons of diesel fuel spilled from a thermal power plant near the industrial city of Norilsk, also located above the Arctic Circle in Siberia.

The Russian mining conglomerate Norilsk Nickel, which owns the power plant, said the leak was cause when pillars supporting a storage tank sand due to thawing permafrost.

The fuel has spilled into the soil, two rivers, and a downstream lake.

Russia’s state fisheries agency, Rosrybolovstvo, said the Norilsk incident was an ecological catastrophe that will “take decades” to be corrected.

With reporting by Interfax