Riga City Council members decided today that the Riga Port will be moved from downtown Riga to Krievu Island (Krievu sala), and approved the necessary infrastructure development measures.
Further work on the project will be done in accordance with the conditions set by the Environment State Bureau, informs LETA.
The bureau has concluded that the planned activity on Krievu Island meets the environmental criteria for the territory, except for a limited area in northern part of the island.
It is planned that seven wharves will be built in Krievu Island where ships with tonnage of up to 1,350 tons could be unloaded. In the new territory, up to 22 million tons of cargo will be handled each year, including approximately 12 million tons of coal.
As a result of moving the port from downtown Riga to Krievu Island, improved will be vessel movement along both banks of the Daugava River, and traffic flows near the center of Riga will ease.
Also, in Krievu Island a railroad station will be built that will be able to load/unload up to 600 cars per day, or 13 million tons of cargo a year.
It is also planned that trucks arriving at the port in the territory of Krievu Island will turn over up to 9 million tons of cargo per year.
Development of the Riga Port in Krievu Island requires reconstruction of several sections of the railroad as well as several streets in Riga.
The Environment State Bureau points out that the project will improve the environmental situation in downtown Riga significantly, and that moving the port to Krievu Island is not likely to cause disturbance for residents in the vicinity of the area.