Examples of environmental harm in Ukraine | return to map

Name: Vasylkiv Airbase
Location: Vasylkiv, Kyiv Oblast

CEOBS database ID: 10338

Context

Located 30 km south of central Kyiv, Vasylkiv military airbase is adjacent to the small city of Vasylkiv and several smaller settlements. The airbase was one of Ukraine’s four air defence control centres and was attacked early in the full-scale invasion.

Timeline of incidents 

24th-26th February 2022

A missile attack occurred early on the 24th February in an attempt to destroy the fighter fleet based at Vasylkiv airbase; as these were airborne, only the runway was damaged.

On the 26th February, the airbase was attacked using a combination of fixed and rotary wing aircraft, paratroopers and ballistic missiles, which struck a number of positions. This included a fuel storage depot, causing a fire that burned around 20,000 m³ of petroleum products from 10 storage tanks. Satellite images show the fire still burning by the morning of the 28th February; it reportedly smouldered for a week. 

The inhalational exposure risks led to local evacuations, advice to residents as far away as central Kyiv to keep windows closed and the development of a seven-point plan for responding to future incidents.

12th March 2022

The airbase was again struck by a missile attack, which hit fuel or lubricant storage tanks, a fuel tanker and warehouses likely storing ammunition. The largest fire at the oil tanks was contained and extinguished within six hours.

Damage assessment  

In addition to the 25 fuel and lubricant tanks destroyed, there was also severe damage to the ammunition storage warehouse, runway, control tower and to vehicles around the site. In spite of this, the airbase remained operational.

Environmental harm assessment

Plume dispersion modelling suggests the smoke was distributed south of the airfield, potentially exposing much of the population of the city of Vasylkiv.¹ These simulations have been corroborated by satellite imagery and social media geolocations; however not by air quality sensors as none within range were operational at that time. 

No direct measurements of the plume composition were possible but similar incidents suggest that there will have been very high concentrations of particulate matter, NOx, nitrous acid, carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, VOCs such as formaldehyde, and potentially dioxins, furans and PAHs. The plume was very dark, meaning the particulate matter is likely to have included a high proportion of black carbon – a pollutant or relevance for public health and the climate.

The destruction of ammunition storage warehouses would have added additional munition-relevant pollutants to the atmosphere and to surrounding soils. These include heavy metals and energetic materials. 

As well as the atmospheric releases, there were oil leaks that led to concentrations 17 times higher than permitted. Oil leaks can infiltrate soils, leaching into groundwater and contaminating surface water bodies. In addition, it is likely that additional contamination resulted from the aqueous film forming foams used to combat the fires. Many such foams contain PFAS chemicals known to have significant ecotoxicity and environmental persistence.²

Longer-term implications

Deposits from the substantial smoke plumes are likely to be a source of long-term pollution. Similarly, discharges of oils and lubricants and PFAS chemicals to the ground surface can contaminate soils and be mobilised into ground and surface waters, with offsite transport possible, potentially impacting local water resources.  

In 2015 a substantial fire occurred at the same fuel depot and any ground assessment of the harm will be complicated by the presence of pre-existing contamination at the airfield, as well as by its ongoing military use.

Dis/mis-information watch

Some of the footage from the 2015 fire at Vasylkiv was re-used in the social media reporting of the fire at the nearby Kalynivka oil storage depot.

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