Volgograd citizens accuse the Kaustik Chlor-Alkali facility of mercury contamination

Citizens in the city of Volgograd, Russia have accused the Kaustik Chlor-Alkali facility of mercury contamination to the local fish and humans.

A press-conference and debates were held in Volgograd on 15 April with the goal of highlighting problems associated with mercury releases from the Kaustic facility to the water reservoirs, which resulted in mercury contamination of the local fish and people. The debates highlighted IPEN's Mercury-Free Campaign Report on fish and hair testing in Volgograd: "Chlor-alkali plant: “Kaustik” plant in Volgograd, Mercury Hot Spot in Russia," which was produced in 2013.

This report focuses on the chlor-alkali plant JSC (joint stock company) “Kaustik.” The JSC "Kaustik” facility is a well-known permanent source of mercury pollution located in the south of Volgograd city. The chlor-alkali industry produces chlorine gas and alkali (sodium hydroxide) by a process that applies electrolysis to saltwater. Some chlor-alkali plants use a mercury-cell process in which mercury is used as the electrolysis cathode. This occurs at the “Kaustik” facility in Volgograd. A single mercury-cell plant may contain hundreds of tons of elemental mercury for use in production and may have even more mercury in its warehouses to replenish lost mercury.

Although two years have passed since the release of the report, the problem is still there and the industrial facility continues fighting with civil society groups trying to protect its production process, a process that results in poisoning of people and the environment.

See the press conference here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKF4NZRmLPc&feature=youtu.be