Arctic Oil Rush: Nenets' Livelihood And Habitat At Risk From Oil Spills

"DUDINKA --  The livelihood of the Nenets people who live along the northern stretches of the Yenisei, Russia’s longest river, depends on two pursuits: fishing and reindeer herding.

But locals have said both of those activities are under threat from an oil terminal due to be built on the Tanalau cape, near where the river empties into the Arctic Ocean. Greenpeace and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) have protested against the high risk of an oil spill in difficult Arctic conditions. More than 40 people have signed a letter of protest to the company building the terminal, the Independent Petroleum Company (IPC).

“They should drill oil, but need to do so in an orderly manner,” said a resident of Baikalovsk, the village closest to the terminal site, who refused to give a name for fear of repercussions at work. “The reindeer will go further away, that’s OK, we’ll find them, but if we foul up the Yenisei, it will be a catastrophe.”"

Alec Luhn reports for the Guardian December 23, 2016.