Russian Prosecutor General Orders Check Of Dangerous Facilities In Permafrost Thaw Areas

Russian Prosecutor General Orders Check of Dangerous Facilities in Permafrost Thaw Areas

Russian Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov instructed to check particularly dangerous production facilities located in areas subject to permafrost thaw, after a major diesel fuel spill in Norilsk, his office's spokesman Andrey Ivanov told reporters

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 05th June, 2020) Russian Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov instructed to check particularly dangerous production facilities located in areas subject to permafrost thaw, after a major diesel fuel spill in Norilsk, his office's spokesman Andrey Ivanov told reporters.

On May 29, a rupture of diesel fuel tank at thermal power plant No.3 in Norilsk resulted in spill of 21,000 cubic meters of fuel. According to Nornickel, the main cause of the accident was warming in the permafrost conditions, which set the supports of the fuel tank in motion.

"In order to prevent a similar situation in especially dangerous facilities located in areas subject to permafrost thawing, Russian Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov ordered regional prosecutors and environmental prosecutors to conduct a comprehensive inspection of such facilities," Ivanov said.

He specified that the inspectors would assess enterprises' compliance with the requirements of the laws when operating hazardous production facilities, environmental monitoring, and organization of emergency prevention measures. At the same time, the effectiveness of government watchdogs will be checked as well, the spokesman added.