No pollution found in Daugava after fire at Novopolotsk oil refinery

RIGA - No oil pollution has been detected in the River Daugava in the wake of a recent fire at a Belarusian refinery in Novopolotsk, Aija Jalinka, a spokeswoman for the State Environmental Service, told LETA.

Repeated monitoring found no pollution in the Daugava.

No signs of the rainbow-colored film, which is characteristic of oil pollution, were found on the surface along the entire river section surveyed. The pH and oxygen levels of the water and the electrical conductivity were tested and found to be in line with the quality standards set for surface waters.

Last week, the State Environmental Service organized water monitoring in the Daugava at the Latvian-Belarusian border to check for pollution related to the fire at the Naftan oil refinery in Novopolotsk, Belarus.

The fire broke out at the oil refinery near the banks of the Daugava in Novopolotsk, Belarus, about 100 kilometers from the Latvian border.

To examine the situation, the State Environmental Service, in cooperation with the Latvian Environment, Geology and Meteorology Center, tested water samples and carried out monitoring measurements.