The government plans to decide on Thursday regarding the construction of the Saatse boot bypass. The plan is to skip the environmental impact assessment to accelerate the construction. The acceleration could make the road completion possible by the end of next year.
The construction of the Saatse boot bypass will take place in the Mustoja nature reserve. This area belongs to the Natura 2000 network. Usually, such projects require an environmental impact assessment. The Transport Administration has already started this.
Minister of Infrastructure Kuldar Leis proposed to the government to skip the environmental impact assessment. Until now, the plan was for the road to be completed by July 2027. If the assessment is skipped, the road could be completed by the end of 2026.
The previous assessment showed that the road construction could affect the Natura 2000 area. Several protected species live in the Mustoja nature reserve. The minister wants to accelerate the construction in the interest of national security. He suggests simplifying the environmental impact assessment.
With the new plan, the environmental impact would be assessed separately during the Natura assessment. This would comply with the Nature Conservation Act.
Last week, large armed units moved through the Saatse boot in Russia. The police and border guard closed this section of the road. Traffic was redirected through Värska, Treski, Matsuri, and Sesniki.