CCB position on the Sweden approval for the Nord Stream II

CCB • June 11, 2018

On 7 June 2018, the Swedish Government has granted a permit to the Nord Stream 2 AG for laying two natural gas pipelines on the continental shelf within the Swedish economic zone in the Baltic Sea. The permit contains number of conditions that the company has to comply with, as outlined in the attached unofficial translation (see full version of the permit in Swedish here )

At the same time, the Government has made it clear that Sweden has a critical attitude towards the Nord Stream 2 project, as it poses risks i.a. against the objectives of the EU Energy Union and does not comply with current EU legislation. Read more in the press-release by the Swedish Government

Despite the released permit that only applies to the construction works within Swedish EEZ, the Coalition Clean Baltic maintains its position (being repeatedly brought to the attention of EC and HELCOM)  that the Nord Stream 2 is highly controversial from environmental point of view project as it failed to:

  • provide fair and transparent public consultations on environmental impact assessment in line with internationally accepted standards (e.g. of Espoo and Aarhus Conventions);
  • ensure minimisation of impacts on nature values, including protected species and habitats and respective protected areas at sea and on land along the whole route of the proposed pipeline, e.g. Marine Protected Areas and Natura 2000 areas  in Sweden (for harbour porpoise) and Germany (for seabirds and bottom habitats) and HELCOM and Ramsar sites in Russian landfall (for protection of numerous IUCN/HELCOM red-listed species and unique habitats);

i.a. construction/pipe-laying/sound generating activities should only occur outside of the harbour porpoise breeding and critical nursing period (May-October). (the permit states “avoid June – August”)

  • apply Best Available Technique to minimise environmental risks associated with the project, especially in terms of pipe-laying process at Russian landfall (micro-tunnelling);
  • set strict guarantees that international and national environmental and nature conservation provisions , e.g. changes of the limits and status of Nature Protected Areas, are not neglected or watered down in favour of economic interests (in Russia the construction works in the unique nature area have started even before getting the official permit – cf. here http://www.greenpeace.org/russia/ru/news/2018/15-05-2017_Nord_Stream_Reserve/ )
  • establish clear mechanism for compensation of environmental damage caused on Union’s natural capital and nature protection sites of the Community importance (in Germany the construction works have started with a spill of lubricant oil, cf. here https://www.nabu.de/news/2018/05/24503.html );
  • maintain clear financial securities for after-life decommissioning of the pipeline.

In addition, the Nord Stream 2 Project simply contradicts with EU goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80-95% when compared to 1990 levels by 2050, by replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy sources and increasing energy efficiency.

Read more about the Coalition Clean Baltic’s position and the follow-up of the Nord Stream 2 project development at the dedicated webpage.

 

CCB is looking for a Network Officer to join our team at the CCB International Secretariat

By CCB • April 9, 2025
Coalition Clean Baltic – CCB is a politically independent network, uniting 27 environmental non-profit organizations, as well as partners and experts from 11 countries surrounding the Baltic Sea. The main goal of CCB is to promote the protection and improvement of the environment and natural resources of the Baltic Sea region by encouraging new and constructive approaches and engaging people to become part of the solution instead of part of the problem. CCB Secretariat is based in Uppsala, Sweden.

Attacks on NGOs: 570+ Organisations Join Forces to Defend Civil Society

By CCB • April 7, 2025
European civil society organisations (CSOs) are currently facing an attack coming from certain Members of the European Parliament. Spearheaded by some MEPs from the European People’s Party (EPP) and by far-right groups, this attack resorts to misleading arguments to fabricate a scandal. This portrayal has been amplified through the media, with notable exceptions of articles that attempted to clarify this misleading narrative. European CSOs are crucial to ensure the voices of citizens from different parts of Europe are heard in the EU institutions. Attacks against civil society are unfortunately not new and are exacerbated by this harmful idea. Furthermore, for-profit corporate lobbying is through the roof when compared to non-profit advocacy. In 2024, the 50 corporations with the largest lobbying budgets collectively spent nearly €200 million on lobbying the EU alone (66% more than in 2015). Comparing this to the funding environmental NGOs receive under the LIFE programme - €15.6 million annually of a €700 million yearly budget - truly shows the weakness of this ‘scandal’. This is why over 570 civil society organisations from 40 countries, including all EU Member States, have joined forces to call on those in power to act now and ensure that civil society is adequately funded and enabled to share our crucial perspectives . In this statement, we address: The source of this false narrative; Inaccurate claims made about how CSOs obtain and use funding; Why it’s paramount that CSOs receive sufficient funding; The need for civil dialogue to enable CSOs participation. Democracy is about the right of citizens to be collectively heard for building an inclusive society and a shared European future; properly funded independent CSOs are a crucial tool for that. We call on decision-makers to ensure civil society organisations can thrive and play their role in interacting with policy-makers in order to have a more fully informed decision-making process. Read the full statement here . -END Civil Society Europe (CSE) is the coordination of civil society organisations at EU level. Through its membership, CSE unites EU-level membership-based organisations that reach out to millions of people active in or supported by not-for-profits and civil society organisations across the EU. CSE was created by several civil society organisations as a follow-up to the European Year of Citizens and was established as an international not-for-profit under Belgian law in 2016. Since then, it has become the point of reference for EU institutions on transversal issues concerning civil dialogue and civic space.