Moldovan environment minister confirms Dniester River's pollution source stopped, authorities ready to intercept potential upstream leaks

The pollution source identified on Dniester River has been stopped, and the authorities continue to monitor the situation, including any potential leaks that could reach the territory of Moldova. Environment Minister Gheorghe Hajder made statements to this effect, after a today’s government meeting.

According to the official, inspections carried out on Ukrainian territory confirmed that discharges at the source have ceased.

“I went to Novodnestrovsk to make sure personally that the pollution source had been shut down. This has been confirmed,” said Gheorghe Hajder.

The minister specified that inspections had been also carried out upstream from  Moldova, where traces of pollution were observed.

“We also carried out an inspection of the Dniester River upstream, and there are still small oil patches that will most likely reach Moldova, but we are already prepared for them to be captured and removed from Dniester,” the official said.

Referring to the origin of the pollution, Gheorghe Hajder noted that it had been caused by actions targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

“There was an attack on Ukraine’s civilian energy infrastructure, which caused leaks from equipment at hydropower plants. The substances entered the Dniester River and we have captured them and continue this process,” said the environment minister.

In the context of the crisis, the official also spoke about measures being considered to ensure the water supply in the Balti municipality.

“In the municipality of Balti, there are a number of underground wells that could have been used in this crisis, and some of them were used,” he said.

The minister stressed the need for a clear mechanism to manage these alternative sources.

“We need a very clear mechanism, both for water operators and for local public authorities, so that these wells are maintained and serviced on time, so that in similar situations, they can be used as alternative sources for consumers,” Gheorghe Hajder concluded.

The Dniester River’s pollution occurred following the attack on the Novodnestrovsk Hydropower Complex in Ukraine, on the night of March 6–7, when explosions caused discharges of technical oils and oil products into the water. A few days later, on March 10, contamination was confirmed on the territory of  Moldova too, including through laboratory tests that indicated exceedances of the allowable limits.

As a result, more localities in the north of the country, including the municipality of Balti and the districts of Soroca, Sangerei and Floresti, were left without drinking water for several days, as the authorities were forced to suspend the supply, in order to protect the population.

After technical interventions and water quality monitoring, the authorities announced the resumption of drinking water supply, once it was confirmed that safety indicators had returned to normal levels.