KRASNODAR, December 19. /TASS/. The fuel oil that settled on the seabed after the tanker incident near the Kerch Strait will eventually be broken down by naturally occurring bacteria in the ecosystem, according to Sergey Bolotin, head of the Department of Geoecology and Nature Management at Kuban State University.

Bolotin added that while full remediation could take several years, it is unlikely to exceed ten years.

"Fuel oil can remain buried for a very long time, but every ecosystem contains living organisms and bacteria that feed on hydrocarbons. Over time, it will be degraded, which could take several years, but no more than ten," Bolotin explained.

He noted that the situation is complicated by waves and cold water temperatures, which prevent the formation of a petroleum film on the surface. Once the waves subside and specialists can deploy booms to contain the spread of oil products, the water surface can be treated with a sorbent, potentially reducing the cleanup process to just a few hours.

"The process itself is very quick, taking just a few hours. It all depends on the sorbent coming into contact with the fuel oil," the source explained. "If the fuel oil has already sunk to the bottom, the sorbent is unlikely to reach it. However, if it remains on the surface, the clean up becomes much easier."

The Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239 tankers collided on December 15. One sailor died and the rest were evacuated. According to the rescuers, the tankers were carrying about 9,200 tons of fuel oil. The Federal Agency for Sea and Inland Water Transport reported that an oil spill had occurred in the Black Sea as a result of the accident. Satellite monitoring data indicated that a total of 3,000 tons of fuel oil leaked.