A municipal sewer line burst in Kyiv’s Darnytskyi District—sewage is flowing into Lake Nebrezh

On November 6, a major utility accident occurred in the Darnytskyi district of Kyiv. Near the construction site of the “H2O” residential complex in Poznyaki, the central city sewer line burst. As a result, sewage flooded the surrounding area and flowed into Lake Nebrezh.

Local residents are calling on utility services to immediately stop the sewage leak and clean up the aftermath of the accident.

According to activists, the accident occurred on the evening of November 4. Sewage began seeping through the joints of the concrete conduit covering the sewer system and flowing into Lake Nebrezh. Three days after the rupture, the area is filled with a terrible stench of sewage, which can be smelled far beyond the site of the accident.

Nebrezh is one of the largest freshwater, closed-basin lakes in the Osokorkivska group in Kyiv’s Darnytskyi district, ranking eighth in size in the capital. The lake, covering an area of over 44 hectares and reaching a depth of up to 32 meters, is located south of Kolektorna Street and is connected by channels to the neighboring lakes of Tyaglo and Martyshiv. Nebrezh is a traditional and popular recreation and fishing spot for residents of Poznyaky and Osokorky.

“Due to the excessive workload of the Kyivvodokanal emergency service—in particular, due to a power outage—there was no rapid response or immediate action taken to stop sewage from entering the lake,” the community notes.

The community notes that the central city sewer system consists of large-diameter pipes and an old gravity-fed concrete channel, which is officially in a state of disrepair. Heavy equipment—concrete mixers and trucks carrying sand—constantly traveling to the “H2O” residential complex construction site places an additional destructive strain on the aging infrastructure.

This is not the first such incident. According to activists, a leak from the sewer occurred last winter while the developer was connecting the residential complex’s networks to the city sewer system.

“By late spring, even before the water in the lake had warmed up, its condition had deteriorated sharply. After samples were taken, significant fecal contamination was detected. This has never happened before,” the statement reads.

Local residents are calling on utility services to immediately take measures to stop the sewage leak and clean up the mess, as the situation threatens to become a full-blown environmental disaster for this popular recreational spot for Kyiv residents.

This was reported by the “Ecopark Osokorky” community.

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