The report lists recommendations to help Ukraine complete its recovery from the oil spill that occurred in the Kerch Strait in November 2007, when a severe storm caused the Volgoneft-139 to release over 1,300 tonnes of fuel oil into the sea. The resulting extensive physical damage to the sea and land led to property losses, contamination of the marine and coastal flora and fauna, as well as high clean-up costs and significant revenue losses for local industries.

At the request of the Government of Ukraine, UNEP and the EC undertook a comprehensive Post-Disaster Needs Assessment in the summer of 2008 to assess the environmental impacts of the spill, as well as economic losses and the institutional capacity of the government to respond to these types of environmental disasters.

The detailed report that was released in Kiev provides a series of recommendations to improve oil spill preparedness and response in Ukraine. Recommendations are particularly targeted at strengthening strategic policy, contingency planning, information management, environmental monitoring and assessment, and waste management.