The Danish Environmental and Food Complaints Board has revoked the environmental permit for the Baltic Pipe project, which the Danish Environmental Protection Agency issued back in July 2019.
According to the complaints board, the Danish Environmental Protection Agency issued the environmental permit before it was sufficiently clarified how the so-called Annex IV species, such as dormice, wood mice and bats and their breeding and resting areas, will be protected during work on the approximately 210 km long gas pipeline.
- We are very saddened by the decision. When we received the authorities' environmental permit for the Baltic Pipe in 2019, it was described that work should continue on a number of measures to ensure good living conditions for, among others, dormice, wood mice and bats that live in some of the places that the Baltic Pipe pipeline passes through. We have since continued to work on a number of measures to protect the animals. But the appeals board says that all of these measures should have been fully clarified before the environmental permit was granted, says Marian Kaagh, deputy director and head of Energinet's construction projects department.
Energinet will now work with the authorities to clarify what consequences the decision will have for the Baltic Pipe project, but is currently working on a shutdown plan for the construction works until the necessary permits are available.
- We now need to thoroughly investigate what this means for the Baltic Pipe project and especially the construction work in places where the protected Annex IV species live, says Marian Kaagh and adds:
- Baltic Pipe is a large construction project that crosses Denmark, and which cannot avoid causing inconvenience, but we are fully focused on ensuring that the gas pipeline is constructed as gently as possible towards people and nature, including ensuring good living conditions for protected species that may be affected along the way, she says.
It is still unclear when further clarification of the further course will be provided. Until then, the project is on hold.
The Environmental and Food Complaints Board has also revoked Energinet's EIA approval for an onshore facility for Vesterhav Syd.
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