Photo: Otrazhenie.Karelia
Thousands of tons of dirty snow left over from last winter remain on an unequipped site with no waterproof surface or protective earth embankment. Dangerous concentrations of arsenic, lead, copper, and petroleum products were found in the snow, according to Otrazhenie.Karelia (“Reflection.Karelia”). Rosprirodnadzor, Russia's environmental watchdog, issued a warning to Petrozavodsk City Hall.
Residents of the Staraya Kukkovka neighborhood have been complaining about the hazardous site for several years. At night, they are disturbed by the noise of machinery, while in spring, dirt and debris flow directly into the Bolshoy Stream. They have repeatedly appealed to the prosecutor's office, Rosprirodnadzor, Rospotrebnadzor (Russia's consumer rights and public health watchdog), and the Investigative Committee. Desperate to get the authorities to act, residents hired a cadastral engineer at their own expense. The expert documented more than 13,000 cubic meters of contaminated material illegally dumped within a water protection zone and beneath power lines.
The city administration has systematically ignored both the problem and court rulings. Back in the spring of 2025, City Hall was ordered either to bring the site into compliance with sanitary standards or transport the snow to snow-melting facilities, but the deadline for compliance, May 15, 2026, has long since passed. Instead of taking action, officials have merely sent boilerplate responses saying they are “looking into finding a new site.” Rosprirodnadzor's findings will now give residents grounds to demand that the authorities fully remedy the violations and compensate for the environmental damage.
