The Russian Spacec Agency and the Space Forces found themselves on the defensive regarding the use of launchers that use NDMH as fuel ("dirty" or "stinky" in the old Soviet jargon). First, there was an article in Nature, which referred to a study of health problems in Kazakhstan and Altay caused by NDMH-based rocket launches from Baykonur. The Russian Space Agency denied that the problem is seruous and claimed that the situation is under control.

Today, Russian news agencies published a report about a meeting at Arkhangelsk oblast, at which the Plesetsk representatives, answering to criticism from the oblast authorities and environmental activists, announced that there will be no Tsyklon-3 launches from Plesetsk anymore (the last one was on December 24, 2004). The deputy commander of Plesetsk launch site also said that launches of another "dirty" launcher - Kosmos-3M - will discontinue completely in about five years.