Nornickel’s Murmansk Transport Division (MTD) has acquired 47,000 salmon fingerlings and, together with the Basin Authority for Fisheries and Conservation of Aquatic Biological Resources (Glavrybvod), released them into the Umba River. By helping to recover the population of the Atlantic salmon, the Company makes up for its environmental impact.

The best place for releasing the fingerlings was chosen by the Polar Research Institute of Marine Fisheries and Oceanography. It is a stretch with lots of rapids and a strong current, which has few predators and enough food for the salmon. These factors ensure that the fingerlings survive and adapt quickly. The area is also a long distance from fishing spots, which will also increase the survival rate of the juvenile salmon.

The eggs hatched at the Umba fish-breeding farm, which spent a year growing each fish to an average of 3 g. The fingerlings were released with utmost care. The fish were transported to their new home in special oxygen-filled polyethylene bags, but not before they underwent veterinary examination.

It was the first time Nornickel’s Murmansk Transport Division released Atlantic salmon fingerlings, but it will not be the last: in 2017 and 2018, MTD plans to acquire and release another 187,000 and 60,000 fingerlings, respectively. The initiative will receive around RUB 50 m in funding.

Nornickel’s Murmansk transport division helps repopulate salmon on the Kola Peninsula