OSCE removes threat posed by toxic rocket fuel component from south-west Ukrainian town, starts work at second site

KALYNIVKA, Ukraine, 26 January 2010 - The last train removing a highly toxic and volatile rocket fuel component from a storage site near the south-western Ukrainian town Kalynivka left today as part of an OSCE project that is set to remove the threat posed by the substance from all of Ukraine.

The train carrying the last of the 1,000 tonnes stored at the site will travel to specialized chemical plants in the Russian Federation, where the fuel component known as melange will be safely disposed of in a process that results in chemical products for civilian use, such as paint components.

The deteriorating containers holding melange posed a threat not only to Kalynivka, a town of 20,000, but also the nearby regional capital Vinnytsya, which has a population of 365,600 residents. Work has begun to clear a second site located just one kilometre from the village of Tsenzhiv and a few kilometres from the regional capital of the Ivano-Frankivsk region. Work at that site, which holds about 2,200 tonnes, is expected to take until late summer 2010.

"Now that the last trainload of melange has left Kalynivka, this toxic hazard is no longer a threat to local residents. From this moment on, nearby communities can enjoy a safer environment," said Mathew Geertsen, the manager of the project.

Melange was widely used in the armies of the Soviet Union, the Warsaw Pact and some other countries to propel short- and medium-range rockets.

Later stages of the project are envisioned to dispose of Ukraine's entire stock of melange, which comprises some 16,000 tonnes. The project, implemented by the OSCE Secretariat, is set to become the OSCE's largest donor-financed project so far.

A single major leak or accident involving melange can have a severe impact on biological life within a two-kilometre radius, and create a contaminated, high-risk zone within a 25-kilometre radius. If the substance comes into contact with anything organic, it causes spontaneous combustion.

The Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Norway, Spain, Poland, the Swedish International Development Co-operation Agency and Ukraine itself are financing the first phase of the project. Some of the donors for the first phase, as well as the United States, have pledged funds for later phases. Fund-raising for the project is under way among OSCE participating States.