Curonian Spit - Current State

Current State

The Curonian Spit is home to the highest moving (drifting) sand dunes in Europe. Their average height is 35 meters, but some attain the height of 60 meters. Several ecological communities are present on and near the Spit, from its outer beaches to dune ridges, wetlands, meadows, and forests. Its location on the East Atlantic Flyway means it is frequently visited by migratory waterfowl. Between 10 and 20 million birds fly over the feature during spring and fall migrations, and many pause to rest or breed there.

The largest town on the spit is Nida in Lithuania, a popular holiday resort, mostly frequented by Lithuanian and German tourists. The northern shoreline of Curonian Spit is the site of beaches for tourists. Both the Russian and Lithuanian parts of the spit are national parks. The settlements of the Curonian Spit (from north to south) are:

• Smiltynė
• Alksnynė
• Juodkrantė
• Pervalka
• Preila
• Nida
• Morskoe
• Rybachy
• Lesnoy

The first six are on the Lithuanian side, while the last three are on the Russian side. The Russian side of the Curonian Spit belongs to Zelenogradsk district of the Kaliningrad Oblast, while the Lithuanian side is partitioned among Klaipėda city municipality and Neringa municipality.

There is a single road that traverses the whole length of the Curonian Spit. In the Russian side it goes to Zelenogradsk, while on the Lithuanian side it goes to Smiltynė. The spit is not connected to mainland Lithuania. Car ferries provide a transportation link between Smiltynė, located on the spit, and the port town of Klaipėda.

Since 2000, the Curonian Spit has been on UNESCO's World Heritage List under cultural criteria "V" (an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land-use, or sea-use which is representative of a culture, or human interaction with the environment especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change).

Currently there is a demand to tear down the homes on the Curonian Spit. These homes are owned by people who were given permits to build by corrupt local government officials. The demand to tear the homes down is based on the fact that the Spit is a UN World Heritage Site and the only structures that were to be allowed there were fishing shacks.