Dead Water from Russia: Fish and Other Life Perish in the Polluted Waters of the Seim River
Publisher: Ukraine War Environmental Consequences Work Group
Date: 2024
Topics: Public Health, Renewable Resources, Weapons, Waste, and Pollution
Countries: Russian Federation, Ukraine
The Seim River flows through Russia’s Belgorod and Kursk regions and from there through Ukraine’s Sumy and Chernihiv regions. In August, a fish die-off was recorded in the Seim, and analyses showed significant violation of the maximum allowable concentrations of ammonium and suspended solids, among other organic substances. Two weeks later, additional contamination was reported. Moreover, the contaminated water traveled downstream into the Desna River, the waters of which are used in Kyiv for drinking water.