N O M I N A T I O N / I N I T I A L    R E P O R T


Partizansk, Russia

 Site Description
 Human Exposure & Health Impact
 Site Progress


Site Description 

Location & Size of Site
Partizansk is a city in Primorski Krai in the Russian Far East. Since the late 19th century it was an active coal mining site but mining operations have ceased since the fall of the Soviet Union. In the early 1950's a large coal-fired electric plant began operations here. The coal ash was disposed in a circular dam part of which broke in May of 2004 and released 60,000 tons of ash into the Lozovy Creek and Partizanskaya River, which is the source of drinking water to Partizansk and other settlements downstream. There are five legacy coal mines in Partizansk. Since their closure, a mix carbon dioxide and nitrogen has been seeping out of the mines and poisoning peoples' cellars.

Contaminant Type, Source & Quantity
60,000 tons of coal ash was released into the Lozovy Creek and Partizanskaya River when the waste containment dam broke. Five coal mines that have been shut down are releasing high levels of carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides into peoples' basements and poisoning them.

Transmission Pathways
Air, water, soil

Number of Potentially Affected People
63,000

Health Impact of Pollutant
No data is available about the health impact from the coal fly-ash release from the dam break. Coal fly ash contaminants of concern include heavy metals, complex hydrocarbons and radionuclides. The environmental fate of coal ash constituents depends on the chemistry of the substances involved. Studies indicate that significant amounts of trace elements from coal and coal ash like lead and mercury have the potential to accumulate in soil and biomagnify.

Site Progress 
January 2005: This site was reviewed by the Technical Advisory Board.