Nord Stream 2 AG has confirmed presence of “additional” 4 redlisted plant species within the proposed route of its gas pipeline across Kurgalsky Nature Reserve, in the Leningrad Region of Russia

CCB • July 22, 2018

In its official press-release from June 25, 2018 published only in Russian in Zug (Switzerland) and Saint Petersburg (Russia), the Nord Stream 2 AG, the developer of the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline across the Baltic Sea, has confirmed presence of so called “additional” protected plant species within the proposed route of the pipeline across Kurgalsky Nature Reserve . Company claims that all those species “are designated as transplantable” without proper explanation of such justification.

According to the press-release, presence of the “newly discovered” plants was confirmed during pre-construction environmental monitoring, which is carried out in “close cooperation with environmental specialists, authorized authorities and taking into account the information provided by scientists and experts from the Leningrad Region”.

Which are those species , one may wonder, and what are the grounds for them to be considered “transplantable” ? ( Pictures below are kindly provided by the researchers of Komarov Botanical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences: Elena Glazkova, Nadezhda Liksakova, Irina Stepanchikova )

 
  1. Water violet or featherfoil ( Hottonia palustris L. )
  • Red Data Book of the Leningrad Region of the Russian Federation
  •  IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
  • Main threat to this plant is connected to economic developments within its habitat
2. Spoonleaf sundew ( Drosera intermedia Hayne )
  • Red Data Book of Leningrad Region of the Russian Federation
  • identified as many as over 2000  plants within the monitored area of proposed construction
  • one of limiting factors leading to this plant’s extinction is disturbance of hydrologic regimes of bogs (very relevant for Kader Bog on Kurgalsky Peninsula)
  3. Bird’s-nest orchid ( Neóttia nídus-ávis )
  • Red Data Book of the Leningrad Region of the Russian Federation
  • IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
  • This orchid, being mycoheterotrophic plant, receives organic substances from symbiotic fungi associated with it . Just this fact makes it absolutely impossible to transplant those plants
  4. Aulacomnium moss ( Aulacomnium androgynum )
  • Red Data Book of the Russian Federation
  • Red Data Book of the Leningrad Region of the Russian Federation
  • This moss is highly-vulnerable to micro-climatic conditions of a specific habitat (substrate, humidity, light, plant communities, etc.), which makes it impossible to transplant
  • d estruction of such habitat at Kurgalskiy Nature Reserve will inevitable lead to a loss of 25% (ca. 470 thousand individuals) of the local population observed in this area, which is critical for the whole population that will be dissected into 2 parts.

The Nord Stream 2 AG claims that company’s actions in case of detection of objects of biological value are regulated by an appropriate protocol developed in accordance with the requirements of the corporate policy on biodiversity conservation in case of detection of protected species during the project implementation. Permit replanting will be obtained in accordance with Russian legislation.

However, both prior to the recent findings as well as now, the experts of Komarov Botanical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences have submitted to the Russian environmental authorities their  negative statement on possibilities of re-planting of those protected species .

Nord Stream 2 AG also claims to recognize its responsibility with respect to protected plant and animal species. The project is implemented in strict compliance with Russian legislation and international standards, including the standards of the International Finance Corporation.

Let us remind that presence of 7 protected species of plants (identified within proposed construction corridor, including recently “found”) has been repeatedly reported to the developer of the project by the scientific community since the very beginning of the public consultations on the project. It has been also clearly stated in Public Environmental Review of the project’s EIA (cf. p.42).

Meanwhile, the developer preferred to ignore those notifications before getting the environmental and construction permits, which is the violation of both Russian environmental legislation (precautionary principle, stated in several laws) as well as IFC Standard 6 (Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Natural Resource Management – with regards to natural habitats destruction). How about other “scientific” data that was used in the project’s EIA? Should we expect more “surprises”?

Given the above, it is highly relevant that the International Union of Nature Conservation ( IUCN ) sends its Advisory Mission to monitor the situation with threatening the status of Kurgalsky Peninsula , wetland of International Importance, being listed by the Ramsar Convention for its unique nature values.

Full text of this release is available in pdf here.

UPDATE :

Don't reopen the EU Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). Implement it.

By CCB • June 15, 2026
The European Commission's evaluation confirms what environmental NGOs across Europe have long argued: the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP)'s challenge is not its design, but its implementation.

Joint NGO recommendations on Baltic Sea fishing opportunities for 2027

By CCB • June 10, 2026
The poor status and decline of many Baltic Sea fish populations have been thoroughly documented over several decades, indicating that the entire ecosystem is in great distress. So far, policy interventions have not reversed, or even halted, the negative trend concerning many of these populations. The European Commission itself recently recognised in its Common Fishery Policy (CFP) evaluation report that progress on stock rebuilding is lacking and the number of stocks “ threatened by collapse due to impaired recruitment has increased during the reporting period ”. Fish populations that once formed the cornerstone of the Baltic Sea fishery, such as the eastern and western Baltic cod and the western Baltic herring, are now doing so poorly that the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) is advising zero catch for these stocks. Yet, even with the targeted fishery being closed for some years now, none of these three stocks are showing sufficient signs of recovery. The condition (such as size and weight-at-age) of many flatfish populations, such as plaice, also raises alarm bells. The salmon spawning migration has fallen short of the target level in the past three years5. As a result, even the healthiest salmon stocks are now unlikely to produce enough smolts corresponding to sustainable levels in the coming years. To address the crisis facing Baltic populations and the broader ecosystem, political will and ambition to improve fisheries management, alongside full implementation of the CFP provisions, are needed. The recent INI report on the Baltic Sea Multi-Annual Plan shows that the European Parliament recognises the importance of ecosystem-based fisheries management as well as the need for consideration of environmental legislation when making decisions on fishing opportunities.6 Fisheries managers must now act swiftly and decisively on the commitment the Commission and Baltic Sea Member States made at last year’s October Agrifish Council to rebuild Baltic Sea stocks. This document presents the joint NGO recommendations regarding Baltic Sea fishing opportunities for 2027, prioritising long-term ecosystem health and sustainable fisheries management over short-term economic interests. The recommendations are based on the ICES advice, the objectives and requirements of the CFP8 and the Baltic Multiannual Plan (MAP), specifically to apply the precautionary approach and implement an ecosystem-based approach to fisheries management, and the objective of achieving Good Environmental Status (GES) under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). Last year’s overarching joint Briefing Series on TAC-setting, co-signed by almost 30 organisations across the EU and the UK, including environmental NGOs, recreational fishers, and fishing rights owners, remains valid and provides further context, background and detailed explanations on the cross-cutting issues raised in this document. Read the Joint NGO recommendations on Baltic Sea fishing opportunities for 2027 here .