Caspian Sea: Seal Deaths Unrelated to Oil Production — Ministry of Ecology

The Ministry of Ecology does not believe oil companies are responsible for the deaths of seals in the Caspian Sea, Orda.kz reports.

The statement came from Alibek Bekmukhametov, deputy chair of the Committee for Environmental Regulation and Control of the Ministry of Ecology.

I can say that our regional ecology department has not recorded such facts. Any enterprise can have a negative impact. But no matter which company it is, or what contract or agreement they develop, if there are environmental violations, no one can escape responsibility. If there is evidence and laboratory research showing excess levels of petroleum products, then the company will be held accountable,
 Bekmukhametov said.

According to him, dark spots on satellite images do not always indicate an oil spill.

Sometimes when a ship passes, turbulence from the propeller leaves a cloudy trail that appears as a dark spot. On satellite images, it can look like pollution. I personally worked in the Atyrau Ecology Department. We once received such an image, flew to the site with the Ministry of Emergency Situations by helicopter, but the facts were not confirmed,
he explained.

At the same time, activists from Save the Caspian Sea insist that the impact of oil companies on the marine ecosystem remains problematic.

Original Author: Zhadra Zhulmukhametova