Biodiversity
Under its 2035 Environmental and Climate Change Strategy, the Company aims to ensure that its operations cause zero biodiversity loss.
Nornickel fully supports the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, in particular, SDG 14 Life below Water and SDG 15 Life on Land.
In its operations and decision-making the Company adheres to the following principles:
Our main goal is to reduce negative biodiversity impact, including forest protection in the areas of operation. We intend to:
For many years, Nornickel has supported initiatives aimed at conserving and restoring biodiversity in the regions where it operates. Since 2022, Nornickel has partnered with scientists from the Russian Academy of Sciences (
Nornickel’s biodiversity conservation activities have been developed on the principle of «Prevent — mitigate (minimize) — restore — compensate»: the company not only reduces the indirect impact of the Company’s activities on ecosystems, but also compensates it.
The Company’s key production sites in the Murmansk Region, the Trans-Baikal Territory and the Norilsk Industrial District have approved biodiversity management plans. At the specially protected areas with which Nornickel interacts, relevant local plans have been approved.
In 2020, the Great Norilsk Expedition included four groups of biodiversity studies: biological research, biological and zoological diversity, hydrobiological and hydrochemical research (oil products), and soil and plants.
In 2022, Nornickel initiated a large-scale biodiversity study in three Russian regions where it operates. The study aims to define the areas of the Company’s environmental impact and assess the current biodiversity status within their ecosystems.
Based on the results of the Big Scientific Expedition Norilsk Nickel together with scientists developed an Integrated Ecosystem Health Indicator (IEHI), which allows to compare the biological diversity of areas affected by the Company’s activities and reference ones that are not affected. Based on the results of annual observations, it is possible to conclude about changes in ecosystems through a change in the average indicator of IEHI.
Nornickel supports nature reserves in the regions where it operates and does not conduct operations within or near protected areas:
Programmes run jointly with nature reserves:
In 2025, ecosystem health monitoring continued in the Lapland Nature Reserve to support the conservation of the indicator species, the wild reindeer.
In cooperation with the Pasvik Nature Reserve, we are implementing an initiative to reintroduce a rare freshwater mollusc, the European freshwater pearl mussel.
As part of collaboration with the Joint Directorate of Taimyr Nature Reserves, work continued to study the rare Putorana subspecies of snow sheep, listed in Russia’s Red Data Book and the IUCN Red List.
Together with the Institute of Biology of the Karelian Research Centre (RAS), we are implementing a project to restock aquatic bioresources in the Monchegorsk area using an innovative technology. Biologists install artificial spawning nests where the eggs of valuable fish species develop before the fry are released into water bodies.
Under the settlement agreement with the Russian Federal Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography (VNIRO) and the Russian Federal Agency for Fishery, Nornickel is implementing initiatives to restore aquatic biological resources in the water bodies of the Norilo-Pyasina lake-river system.
To restore populations of commercially important fish species (common carp and peled), we carry out stocking of water bodies in the Trans-Baikal Territory.
Since 2023, Nornickel has operated the Scientific Volunteering programme. During the summer holidays, students from industry-related universities work in Arctic nature reserves, studying the condition of flora and fauna in protected areas, participating in field research, and learning from reserve scientists.
Since 2025, Company employees have also taken part in the programme as part of the Poneslos (“Let’s Do It”) environmental initiative. For the past 10 years, employee volunteers have supported the nature reserves Nornickel partners with locally. A new level of volunteering: students and employees work in the reserves hand in hand with scientists and contribute to research efforts.