Pro-Russian resources are disseminating information that the burial ground in Odesa was allegedly used to dispose of hazardous waste associated with the activities of US military biological laboratories. They say this was discovered during the neutralization of 147 tons of dust that had accumulated due to the fact that a ship sank near Odesa in 1979. Already today, local authorities have decided to cover up the traces of their activities instead.

The fact-checkers of the VoxUkraine project decided to investigate this case. They found out that on October 20, 2023, work on the disposal of 147 tons of dust near Odesa actually began. In 1972, the Mozdok ship sank in the Gulf of Odesa, containing 900 tons of dust on board. Two years later, a storage facility was built near the village of Altestove, and the dust was preserved in concrete bunkers. Already in 2012, most of the chemicals were disposed of, but due to lack of funding, 147 tons of waste continued to be stored in storage. Over the years, local residents felt the stench, and chemicals penetrated the soil and poisoned the Khadzhibey Estuary. This year, funds were allocated from the local budget to eliminate hazardous substances due to fears that Russian shelling could lead to the release of chemicals into water and soil. The liquidators got to work on time, as some bags of poison were already on the verge of depressurization.

Russian propagandists are spreading fake news about American biological laboratories in Ukraine and discrediting the Biological Threat Reduction Program, in which Ukraine has been participating since 2005 and of which Russia was a participant until 2014. This program operates within the framework of another – the general program of joint threat reduction. Russian propaganda uses tactics of demonizing the enemy, claiming that in Ukraine there are biological laboratories with dangerous substances, the purpose of which is to harm Russia.