The Greenpeace icebreaker "Arctic Sunrise" will dock in Burgas on September 5, and the ship will be open to visitors. This was announced by the organization. Those wishing to view it will be able to do so at the Marine Station between 10:00 and 13:00 and between 15:00 and 19:00. The visit is part of the campaign of "Greenpeace" - Bulgaria "Living Black Sea without Oil and Gas", directed against new projects for oil and gas extraction at sea, the organization indicated. A photographic exhibition is also planned in the area in front of the ship, dedicated to the 15 years of Greenpeace activities in Bulgaria.
The visit to Burgas follows a scientific study of marine mammals off the Southern Black Sea Coast. An international team of scientists in the protected areas of "Ropotamo" and "Strandja" participated in it. For this purpose, an underwater microphone attached to the ship's hull was used, through which the sounds of the cetaceans were recorded. According to "Greenpeace", the study reached 24 nautical miles from the coast, which is twice the usual range of such studies.
"Conducting this study is a real thrill for our team. The ship allowed us to collect valuable data on where marine mammals are found and how they use the sea space," said Martin Tomov, coordinator of the campaign "Live Black Sea without Oil and Gas."
"Arctic Sunrise" has been part of the Greenpeace fleet since 1995, when it undertook its first voyage to the North Sea to document oil pollution from offshore installations. After more than ten years, the vessel arrived in Bulgaria in early August this year, first docking at the Varna Sea Station. It subsequently joined an action against the tanker "Kairos", which is anchored in the Burgas Bay after being abandoned by a Turkish tugboat near Ahtopol at the end of last year.