The German Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union (NABU) announced that their conflict with the government over the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline is "settled" and noted that they will now demand compensation for the harm purportedly dealt by the project's operator.
"The current conflict concerns the altered construction timeframe between January and June at the vicinity of the bird sanctuary. Now that construction is no longer taking place in the German patch of the Baltic Sea in the said months, this conflict is settled", NABU's representative Kim Detloff said.
Detloff further pointed out that NABU has long criticised the building of the Nord Stream 2 over allegations of the damage it inflicts on nature and the seabed. The group of ecologists recently filed a lawsuit against the German Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) over its decision to allow the construction of the pipeline in German waters. This resulted in a temporary halting of the efforts to finish the Nord Stream 2.
A joint megaproject between Russia's Gazprom and several European energy giants, the pipeline was designed to be able to pump up to 55 billion cubic metres of gas per year, reportedly allowing the opportunity to avoid gas shortages in Europe in tough winters. The project is strongly opposed by the US. Washington claims that the Nord Stream 2 endangers European energy security and limits the likelihood of of purchasing gas elsewhere, for example from American LNG companies. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken raised the topic of the Biden administration's opposition to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in his conversation with German colleague Foreign Minister Heiko Maas during talks at the G7 summit.
US State Department spokesperson Ned Price did not elaborate on the details of their conversation. However, Germany is one of the biggest benefactors of the pipeline and has been staunchly defending it – both within the EU and in talks with the US, asking Washington to lift its sanctions from those companies and entities participating in the development of the Nord Stream 2.