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Greenpeace to appeal against court decision in pipeline construction case

The court denied the claim to ban construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in the Kurgalsky Nature Reserve in the Leningrad Region

ST. PETERSBURG, December 10. /TASS/. Greenpeace plans to appeal against the decision taken by the Moskovsky District Court of St. Petersburg, denying its claim to ban construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in the Kurgalsky Nature Reserve located in the Leningrad Region, program leader of Greenpeace Russia Mikhail Kreindlin told TASS on Monday.

"We plan to appeal. However, there is no decision in the final form so far and we are unaware of the basis for the court to make its decision. When we will receive it, we will prepare the petition," Kreindlin said. The appeal can be filed at the turn of December 2018 or in early January 2019, he added.

The court dismissed the action filed by Greenpeace to ban construction of the gas pipeline, the united press service of city courts reported earlier today.

The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline route goes over the territory of the Leningrad Region and involves the Kurgalsky Nature Reserve on the coast of the Narva Bay. This is the only option available because of limitations of the minimum safe distance between main gas pipelines and settlements, representatives of the Nord Stream AG project operator said earlier. The company reported it had developed special technical specifications for construction of the gas pipeline, which would make possible to significantly reduce the impact on the nature reserve.

Greenpeace attempted to dispute in court the decision of the Leningrad Region on the change in the status of the Kurgalsky Nature Reserve and the regime of its use, authorizing construction of linepipe facilities in its territory. Courts of several instances tried the claim of the organization and in March 2018, the Supreme Court dismissed the claim of Greenpeace regarding the Kurgalsky Nature Reserve.

The Kurgalsky Nature Reserve founded in 1975 has the area over 55.5 hectares and comprises the Kurgalsky Peninsula and the adjacent water area of the Gulf of Finland.

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