A terrible diesel fuel spill in the Russian Arctic is catastrophic not only to the nature of this region but also to local people. The indigenous people who live in tundra depend on rivers and lakes and their inhabitants. Grigory Dyukarev, chairman of the Association of Indigenous Minorities of Taymyr Peninsula, says that this accident is a huge damage to their economy:

“The river is spawning, and our people go fishing there. In general, the river feeds us. It is... like a supermarket for you. In the city you can go to the store, but we live in a tundra. And if the river is polluted, there will be no more fish for us.

But we will lose not only fish: a wild deer is likely to change migration routes, so we will have to travel hundreds of kilometers for hunting.

We believe that [the company responsible for the accident] the Norilsk Nickel got off easily. They lose only money, and we lose water, land, wildlife, fish resources and the ability to provide our families with minimum income”.

To achieve social and climate justice Russia needs the green recovery package that will be based on climate-friendly solutions and will prevent such catastrophes in the future.