Environmental and Social Impact Assessment for South Stream Gas Pipe-Line through Serbia, Serbia

Client: DIEM Ltd., Russia

Name of partner(s): GIS Solutions

Start/Completion Date: October 2009 – July 2011

Project description: The South Stream project was aimed at strengthening the European energy security with the Russian natural gas supply route. The major objective of the project was meeting the additional demand for natural gas in Europe. In the middle and long term gas consumption will grow in the European Union. By 2020-2025 Europe will additionally demand some 200 billion cubic meters of gas per annum. Following works and services have been done:

• Analysis of legal and regulatory framework in the field of environmental protection, environmental impact assessment, spatial planning, strategic environmental assessment and other environmental permitting procedures;
• Historical (stock) data collection on environmental constraints along the proposed pipeline route in the scale of 1:500.000 (for an overview of construction areas) and 1: 100.000 (for the pipeline corridor), including identification and detailed analysis of ecologically and economically important sites and areas in the corridor of the projected pipeline route;
• Preliminary environmental and socio-economic impact assessment of pipeline construction and operation based on object-analogues on alternative pipeline route options, in terms of assessment of: impact on soil and land resources; impact on flora; impact on fauna; impact on protected areas; impact on social sphere;
• Preliminary assessment of estimated costs of environmental charges, environmental and countervailing actions.
• Development of environmental activity strategy, including: concept of fulfillment of environmental constrains and reduction of negative environmental impacts of proposed economic activity; program and scope of work on ESIA at the «Project» stage.
• Preparation of set of documents (notification, application) for ESIA procedure start-up.