European Union

On December 19, 2007 the Public Outreach Conference of the Environmental Collaboration for the Black Sea Project funded by the European Union took place in Aarhus Center in Kyiv. Officials from ministries including the Ministry of Environmental Protection of Ukraine took part in the conference. Also present were scientists, researchers, representatives of international agencies and non-governmental organizations, EU environmental projects and representatives of the mass media

The Conference was held following the decisions of the first Steering Committee meeting in November 2007 in Brussels. The goal of the event was to inform the various stakeholders about the commencement of the Project and the activities to be implemented in Ukraine.

The Project is focused on the improvement of regional co-operation and improvement of the Convention on the Protection of the Black Sea Against Pollution (the Bucharest Convention), development and submission of amendments for review of the Convention Parties representatives.

According to the results of the first Steering Committee meeting the Project activities are allocated in the following way:

§ the pilot project on Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) will be implemented in Georgia

§ an inter-laboratory comparison exercise and training on water monitoring will take place in Moldova

§ development of the policy document on Marine Reserves and their establishment will be held in Ukraine. Following the proposal of the Ministry of Environmental Protection in Ukraine the establishment of Marine Reserves will take place in Small Field of Phyllophora in Karkinitsky Bay, lying offshore between western Crimea and Kherson Oblast.

Also in Ukraine there will be the development of the ICZM National Strategy and the drafting of two regulations: Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on Approval of the Regulations on Designing Coastal Zoning Systems Specifying Territories Appropriate for Different Economic Activities; and Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on Approval of the Regulations on the System of Wetland Natural Resource Use within Offshore Water, Sea and River Estuaries

While developing the Marine Reserves policy document special attention should be paid to the future accession of the EU to the Bucharest Convention bearing in mind that Romania and Bulgaria joined the EU in January 2007, and that Turkey is a candidate country. More than half of the maritime area of the Bucharest Convention will soon be covered by EU legislation and policies such as the EU Marine Strategy, requiring more involvement of the EU in the region. The improved Bucharest Convention as an important political document that will provide fostering of the Black Sea synergy.

For more detailed information please visit the website of the Project: http://ecbsea.org