Fuel spilled near Russia's Norilsk gets into Lake Pyasino - governor
KRASNOYARSK. June 9 (Interfax) - Oil products have been spotted in Lake Pyasino following the accident and diesel fuel spill at a thermal power plant near Norilsk, Krasnoyarsk Territory Governor Alexander Uss said in an interview with journalists.
"The fuel has got into Pyasino as well. This is a beautiful lake about 70 kilometers long. Naturally, it has both fish and a good biosphere. But it's impossible to predict how it will bear this brunt now. [...] At the moment, it's important to prevent it [spilled fuel] from pouring into the Pyasina River, which flows farther to the north. I think that it will be possible," Uss said.
On May 29, a fuel tank at Power Plant No. 3 of the Norilsk-Taymyr Energy Company (NTEC), which is part of Norilsk Nickel and provides electricity for the Norilsk industrial district, lost pressure and began leaking oil products, which caused a fire. The tank contained more than 21,000 tonnes of diesel fuel, which leaked into the Daldykan and Ambarnaya Rivers, which flow into Lake Pyasino.
Four criminal cases have been opened in relation to the accident, and a workshop head from Norilsk Heat and Power Plant No. 3 has been arrested.
The Norilsk fuel spill was declared a federal emergency on June 3.
Lake Pyasino is of glacial origin and is situated approximately 20 kilometers from Norilsk. The area of the lake's water surface is 735 square meters. It accumulates water from other large lakes located on the Putorana Plateau (Putorana State Nature Reserve). Only one river, the Pyasina River, flows out of the lake. The river is located in one of the clusters of the Great Arctic State Nature Reserve and flows into the Kara Sea.