A scientific panel of the International Union for Conservation of Nature has published a report accusing the operator of the Sakhalin-2 gas development project of failing to collaborate with it in evaluating the project's potential impact on western gray whales on the Sakhalin shelf.
The IUCN's Western Gray Whale Advisory Panel filed the accusation in the fifth report on whale conservation on the Sakhalin shelf in eastern Russia.
The panel was established in 2006 to assess the Sakhalin project's possible impacts on western gray whales and minimize the risks to this whale population from human activities. It is an independent group of scientists charged with providing advice and recommendations to the project operator, Sakhalin Energy.