The forlorn tundra
Oil spills in Russia: causes and solutions
Vladimir Čuprov, Veda Košovskaja
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
One of the most serious environmental problems in Russia is the contamination of soil and water through crude oil and crude oil products. The main cause is corrosion damage to oilfield pipes that have outlasted their permitted period of operation. Significant sums of money are needed in order to repair and replace them – sums that the oil companies are not willing to pay. The current standards are not enough to fundamentally reduce the number of breakages in oilfield pipes. As long as Russia fails to make it mandatory for the oil companies to replace the oil pipelines that have reached the end of their operational life, there is no improvement in sight.
(Osteuropa 7-9/2020, pp. 279–288)