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Putin orders oil pipeline shifted
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said the route of a controversial
new oil pipeline should be altered to avoid the world’s deepest
freshwater lake.Mr Putin said the route, which would have passed close to Lake Baikal, should move 40km (25 miles) north.
Environmentalists who feared the eastern pipeline would pose a risk to
Lake Baikal’s unique biodiversity say the decision is a campaign
victory.The pipeline will link the Siberian oil fields and the Pacific coast.
Lake Baikal, designated a World heritage site by Unesco, is home to
hundreds of unique species and the region includes the last remaining
wild habitat of Russia’s Amur leopard.It is the first time that such a positive environmental decision has been taken in a long time
Andrey Petrov
The area is also prone to seismic activity and campaigners feared
earthquakes could disrupt the pipeline, causing an oil spill and
irreversible damage to the wildlife.The state-backed pipeline monopoly Transneft has in the
past said that rerouting the 1.6 million-barrel-a-day pipeline from the
proposed path along the shores of Lake Baikal would cost up to a
billion dollars.Final agreement
Mr Putin’s orders go against recommendations from the state environment watchdog, which had backed Transneft’s plans.
But during a meeting on Siberian development, which included Transneft
directors, Mr Putin supported recommendations from the deputy head of
Russia’s Academy of Sciences, Nikolai Laverov, that the route be
changed.
Mr Putin said construction could start at either end to give time for
studies to be carried out to decide on a new route north of Lake
Baikal, according to the Itar-Tass news agency.“The route should go north of the area that Laverov has named,” Mr Putin insisted.
“In this way we are significantly reducing the ecological risks before
construction begins. We can consider this agreement final.”Greenpeace Russia, which has led demonstrations against Transneft’s proposed route, has welcomed Mr Putin’s decision.
Spokesman Andrey Petrov said: “It is victory for the whole of civil society in Russia, not just the ecological movement.”
He said environmental considerations would still have to be taken into
account when the new route was planned, but moving it from the shore of
Lake Baikal had been a key issue.
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