Moldova asks EU for help with Dniester River contamination from Russian attack

According to local outlet Newsmaker, Prime Minister Alexandru Munteanu has invoked EU’s Civil Protection Mechanism to help contain and clean up the contamination.

Specialists from Moldova, Ukraine, and Romania are already working to contain the damage, and service members of the Moldovan National Army have been deployed.

“While Russia continues to attack a neighboring state, our international partners support us,” Munteanu said.

Authorities have focused on ensuring clean water supplies for residents of several northern Moldovan localities most affected by the pollution. Officials declared a yellow alert in the area around the village of Naslavcea.

On March 12, Ukraine’s Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture said preliminary findings indicate the pollution likely came from machine oil leaking into the river after Russian missiles damaged the Dniester Hydroelectric Power Plant in Chernivtsi Oblast on March 7.