Kremlin-appointed authorities in Russian-occupied Crimea have closed a Ukrainian titanium plant in Armyansk, in the north of the peninsula, for two weeks due to high concentration of hazardous substances in the air there. The announcement came on Sep. 4 from the Russia-appointed head of Crimea, Sergey Aksyonov.
“Last night, due to air temperature fluctuations, the concentration of sulphur dioxide (a toxic gas with an acrid odor) in the air exceeded the norms,” he wrote on his Facebook page.
Kindergartens and schools in Armyansk have been closed for two weeks too. Teenagers and children of preschool age with their mothers will be sent to sanatoriums and summer camps.
Residents of Armyansk, a town in northern Crimea with a population of a little over 20,000 people, have been raising an alarm about air contamination since Aug. 23. They complained about a smell of burning in the town and of feeling unwell, with throat and nose irritation, and skin rashes.
Members of the public also reported that metal objects in their houses were covered in a rust-like substance, and after a few days, still-green leaves began to fall off the trees.
Tests showed that the effects had been caused by excessive emissions of sulphur dioxide from Ukrainian Chemical Products, a chemicals plant located in Armyansk, as a result of dry and hot weather, Aksyonov said.
In his words, the plant’s management supported the decision to halt the work for two weeks.
The plant, formerly known as Crimean Titanium, is the largest chemicals manufacturer in eastern Europe and has belonged to Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash’s Group DF since 2000s. Besides titanium dioxide, it produces mineral fertilizers, sulphuric acid, and other chemicals used in the production of paint, plastic, and rubber.
After the start of the occupation of Ukraine’s Crimea by Russia in 2014, Group DF registered a new company in Moscow, Titanium Investments, to manage the plant, which was also renamed as Ukrainian Chemical Products and was re-registered in Kyiv. In this way, the company has been able to avoid sanctions.
A spokesperson for Group DF in Kyiv said the company doesn’t comment on the operation of its Crimean assets.
Carried by the wind, the plant’s toxic emissions have also reached parts of Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukraine, next to Armyansk, according to reports from locals.
