Examination confirmed that the cranes in the Kherson region were killed by poison for rodents
The police of the Kherson region continue to investigate the causes of the death of birds in the territory of the biosphere reserve “Askania-Nova”.
Since the beginning of the year, the police of the Kherson region received 25 reports of the death of red-billed birds on the territory of the “Askania-Nova” biosphere reserve and agricultural fields. For all the facts, information is entered in the Unified Register of Pretrial Investigations, which are investigated in one criminal proceeding opened under Part 2 of Art. 239 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine “Pollution or spoilage of land”.
The specimens of the dead birds were sent for research to the Kharkiv Research Institute of Forensic Expertise. After carrying out veterinary and environmental examinations, the institute's employees found that the death of birds was caused by poisoning with the active ingredient brodifacum, which is part of agrochemicals used to control rodents.
To date, 52 farms have been checked in the Kakhovsky district, some of them have detected chemicals based on brodifacum. Currently, investigative actions are carried out on the territory of these farms under the operational support of the department for the protection of public interests and the state of the regional head of police. Land lease documentation and permitting documentation for the use of pesticides and agrochemicals that were used to control rodents are checked. A pre-trial investigation is ongoing.
