Who gains from saving nature
Ledger 1 : 33 — For each dollar financing nature-based solutions in 2023, about $33 financed activities harmful to nature. (UNEP)
Cases / War and military activity · Ukraine · 2022–2023

Azovstal, Mariupol and the Sea of Azov, 2022–

Nature's voice · report
Before the war, wastewater of nearly one billion m³ per year from Azovstal carried chlorides, sulphates, phenols, petroleum products and nitrates above permissible limits into my Sea of Azov, according to a 2017 study cited by CEOBS.
Did nature suffer? Yes. Harm is on record.
Recorded
  • A 2019 study cited by CEOBS found Azovstal's outflow was the largest single pollution source into my Sea of Azov. CEOBS
  • In the 2022 siege the plant took 214 craters and 52 satellite-detected fires, according to CEOBS; CEOBS lists likely releases of heavy metals, hydrocarbons and asbestos. CEOBS
What the record lacks: 5 none on record · 1 not disclosed · 1 not measured · 1 unclear See the gaps

The Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol was heavily damaged during the siege of April–May 2022. CEOBS cites pre-war studies that named its wastewater as the largest single pollution source into the Sea of Azov; no post-2022 water data is on record, and Metinvest's applications to the ECHR state no amounts.

None on recordEnvironmental damage figure for Azovstal or the Sea of Azov
Metinvest's ECHR applications (October 2022) state no amounts and mention no environmental component.

Status As of October 2023: no judgment on the ECHR applications and no post-2022 Sea of Azov water data is on record; the Russian-installed administration announced an ecopark for the site.

What?
Azovstal, a steelworks cited by pre-war studies as the largest single pollution source into the Sea of Azov, was heavily damaged during the 2022 siege of Mariupol. No post-2022 water data is on record. CEOBS
Where?
Azovstal Iron and Steel Works, left bank of the Kalmius river on the Sea of Azov, Mariupol, Donetsk Oblast. CEOBS
When?
Siege 15 April–17 May 2022; hydrogen-sulphide warning 18 May 2022; ECHR claims announced 25 October 2022; ecopark announcement reported 27 October 2023. Metinvest
Who?
Gained
None on record
Lost
  • Metinvest Group companies — Property claims against Russia at the ECHR; no amounts stated Metinvest
Harmed
  • Sea of Azov — Contamination observed mixing with sea water, according to CEOBS; likely releases of heavy metals, hydrocarbons and asbestos CEOBS
Why?
Hostilities during the siege of the plant. Responsibility for particular strikes is not addressed in the sources. CEOBS
How?
Airstrikes and fires damaged the plant; CEOBS records craters, fires and damaged structures from satellite imagery. CEOBS
6 of 6 questions answered from the record

What happened

The record, in order.

The Azovstal Iron and Steel Works stands on the left bank of the Kalmius river at the Sea of Azov in Mariupol. CEOBS records first damage on satellite imagery on 9 March 2022 and a siege of the plant from 15 April to 17 May 2022. CEOBS counted 214 craters (UNOSAT, 25 April 2022, “an underestimate”), 52 satellite-detected fires, 87 instances of direct damage and at least 57% of built structures damaged (Sentinel-1). A landfill fire on the site was recorded on 12 June 2022.

CEOBS cites pre-war studies on the plant's pollution: wastewater of nearly one billion m³ per year with chlorides, sulphates, phenols, petroleum products and nitrates above permissible limits (2017 study); Azovstal's outflow as the largest single pollution source into the Sea of Azov (2019 study); wastewater lethally toxic to Ceriodaphnia (2014 study). Azovstal was Ukraine's seventh-largest single emitter, and satellite NO₂ data suggest average air quality improved during the siege. For the war period CEOBS lists likely releases of heavy metals, hydrocarbons and asbestos and says contamination was observed mixing with Sea of Azov water; it states that the occupation prevents an independent field assessment.

On 18 May 2022 the Mariupol City Council (Ukrainian, displaced) warned that bombardment could have damaged a structure holding back “tens of thousands of tonnes of concentrated hydrogen sulphide solution”. Mayor Vadym Boichenko demanded access for international experts and the UN. The city's adviser Petro Andriushchenko said the attacks “with a high degree of probability damaged the protective structures” of a “chemical lake”. No measurement of a release is on record.

On 25 October 2022 Metinvest Group announced that 16 of its companies, among them Azovstal and Ilyich Steel, had filed claims against Russia at the European Court of Human Rights under Article 1 of Protocol 1 (property), following a claim by co-owner Rinat Akhmetov filed on 23 June 2022. The release states no amounts and no environmental component. In October 2023, as reported on 27 October, Denis Pushilin, head of the Russian-installed administration in Donetsk, said that Azovstal “in the form in which it worked will not be restored”, called it the “main polluter of the Sea of Azov” and said a technopark and an ecopark would be laid out on the site.

  1. 2022First damage on satellite imagery (9 Mar); siege of the plant (15 Apr–17 May); Mariupol City Council hydrogen-sulphide warning (18 May); Akhmetov's ECHR claim (23 Jun); landfill fire on the site (12 Jun); Metinvest announces 16 companies' ECHR claims (25 Oct)
  2. 2023Pushilin says Azovstal will not be restored in its former form and that a technopark and ecopark will be laid out (reported 27 Oct)

What was said

Claims, in the words of those who made them.

“tens of thousands of tonnes of concentrated hydrogen sulphide solution”

Mariupol City Council, warning of a structure possibly damaged by bombardment · 18 May 2022 · translated from Ukrainian · LB.ua

“with a high degree of probability damaged the protective structures”

Petro Andriushchenko, adviser to the Mariupol mayor, on a “chemical lake” · 18 May 2022 · translated from Ukrainian · LB.ua

“16 companies of Group have filed claims to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) against Russia”

Metinvest Group · 25 October 2022 · Metinvest

“Azovstal in the form in which it worked will not be restored”

Denis Pushilin, head of the Russian-installed administration in Donetsk, on RT · 27 October 2023 · translated from Russian · Focus.ua

“main polluter of the Sea of Azov”

Denis Pushilin, head of the Russian-installed administration in Donetsk · 27 October 2023 · translated from Russian · Focus.ua

“a technopark and an ecopark will be laid out”

Denis Pushilin, head of the Russian-installed administration in Donetsk · 27 October 2023 · translated from Russian · Focus.ua

How it looked

What was shown, beside what was recorded.

Shown

  • Mariupol mayor warned of threat of destruction of the Sea of Azov due to bombing of Azovstal (headline)
    LB.ua, 18 May 2022 · LB.ua
  • Pollutes the sea: Pushilin said an ecopark will be built on the Azovstal site (headline)
    Focus.ua, 27 October 2023 · Focus.ua

Recorded

  • Pre-war: wastewater of nearly one billion m³ per year with chlorides, sulphates, phenols, petroleum products and nitrates above permissible limits (2017 study, as cited by CEOBS).
    CEOBS
  • Pre-war: Azovstal's outflow was the largest single pollution source into the Sea of Azov (2019 study, as cited by CEOBS); wastewater lethally toxic to Ceriodaphnia (2014 study); Azovstal was Ukraine's 7th-largest single emitter.
    CEOBS
  • War period: CEOBS records 214 craters, 52 satellite-detected fires, 87 instances of direct damage and at least 57% of built structures damaged, and lists likely releases of heavy metals, hydrocarbons and asbestos.
    CEOBS
  • Satellite NO₂ data suggest average air quality improved during the siege (CEOBS).
    CEOBS
  • Metinvest's ECHR applications state no amounts and mention no environmental component.
    Metinvest

Who gained

Money that reached nature, beside money that stayed elsewhere.

Reached nature or the ground

Not published
Environmental damage at Azovstal or in the Sea of Azov—
No figure on record.

Gained elsewhere

Not totalled
Metinvest Group companies' property claims against Russia at the ECHR (16 companies)—
No amounts stated.
Currency: UAH · Window: Not specified. All figures cover the same period. * Estimate built from cited figures.

Responses on record

  • Mariupol City Council (Ukrainian, displaced) (18 May 2022): Warned on 18 May 2022 that bombardment could have damaged a structure holding hydrogen sulphide solution; Mayor Vadym Boichenko demanded access for international experts and the UN. · LB.ua
  • Russian-installed administration in Donetsk (Denis Pushilin) (27 October 2023): Azovstal will not be restored in its former form; it was the main polluter of the Sea of Azov; a technopark and an ecopark will be laid out on the site. · Focus.ua
  • Metinvest Group (25 October 2022): 16 Group companies, including Azovstal and Ilyich Steel, filed claims against Russia at the ECHR under Article 1 of Protocol 1. · Metinvest

In court and with insurers

Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.

Lawsuits and rulings

  1. 2022–Ongoing
    Metinvest Group companies v. Russia (property claims)
    European Court of Human Rights · International court · 16 Metinvest Group companies, including Azovstal and Ilyich Steel → Russia

    Announced by Metinvest on 25 October 2022, under Article 1 of Protocol 1 (property); follows a claim by co-owner Rinat Akhmetov filed on 23 June 2022. No amounts are stated and the release mentions no environmental component. No judgment is on record. Metinvest

Insurers

No insurer decision on record.

What nature saw

Outcomes measured on the ground, and nature's note.

Nature's report opens this page. Below: further outcomes measured on the ground.

Craters on site
214
UNOSAT, 25 April 2022; “an underestimate” (CEOBS)
Structures damaged
≥57%
Sentinel-1 analysis cited by CEOBS
Pre-war wastewater
~1 billion m³/yr
2017 study cited by CEOBS
Post-2022 water data
None
Sea of Azov

What we don't know

Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.
No independent ecological evaluation

Money

  • None on record Environmental damage at Azovstal or in the Sea of Azov — No figure on record.
  • None on record Metinvest Group companies' property claims against Russia at the ECHR (16 companies) — No amounts stated.

Record

  • Not measured Not measured: Sea of Azov water quality after 2022; no Russian or Ukrainian water data is on record, and CEOBS states that the occupation prevents an independent field assessment.
  • Unclear Unclear: Whether the structure holding hydrogen sulphide solution was damaged on the dates the Mariupol City Council gave; no measurement is on record.
  • None on record None on record: An environmental damage figure for Azovstal or the Sea of Azov.
  • Not disclosed Not disclosed: Amounts claimed by the 16 Metinvest companies at the ECHR.
  • None on record None on record: A judgment on the ECHR applications.
  • None on record None on record: An environmental assessment accompanying the announced ecopark.

Did the harm stop?

None on record.

Who paid?

None on record.

Sources

Voices on record: ✓ Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts✓ Press and investigations✓ Communities and civil society— Researchers

Company or project

Press and investigations

Communities and civil society

Connected cases

Related matters, and cases linked to this one through the same organisations, with the role each played in both.
Terms used on this page

Law and courts

European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)
The Council of Europe's court in Strasbourg, which rules on complaints that a state has violated the European Convention on Human Rights.
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