08 Nov
2006 - Vienna/Odessa – WWF expresses its deep
concern over the resumption of dredging in the
core zone of the Ukrainian Danube Delta Biosphere
Reserve. Work on the Bystroye Canal resumed on
Saturday, November 4, when Delta Lotsman, the
Ukrainian government agency in charge of the project,
sent the dredger “Tsuryupinsk” to the site. The
work is reportedly being undertaken to renew areas
already dredged under Phase 1 of the project,
which had silted in following initial dredging
in 2004.
“Construction of the Bystroye
Canal is being undertaken in contravention of
international as well as national law. It also
make no economic sense, as it will require continuous
dredging to keep it free from silt”, said Michael
Baltzer, director of the WWF Danube-Carpathian
Programme.
On July 10, 2006, a United Nations
Inquiry Commission brought together by the United
Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE)
unanimously concluded that the building of the
Bystroye Canal was likely to have significant
adverse transboundary impacts, and therefore contravened
the requirements of the Espoo Convention on Environmental
Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context.1)
The Bystroye Canal has been
surrounded by controversy from the beginning,
drawing sharp criticism from environmental groups
within and outside of Ukraine as well as a range
of governments and international institutions
and organizations, including the Ramsar and Bern
Conventions.
Construction of the Bystroye
Canal was initiated under previous Ukrainian President
Leonid Kuchma, but was put on hold following the
Orange Revolution and subsequent change in regime
in late 2004. Since then, a criminal investigation
was launched into reported mishandling of funds
by Delta Lotsman, the government-controlled agency
responsible for implementing the project.
The Environmental Impact Assessment
(EIA) that was undertaken for the second phase
of the project was rejected by the Ukrainian Ministry
of Environment in fall 2005. Deputy Minister Yavorska,
who rejected the EIA, was subsequently removed
from her position. In early 2006, the Ukrainian
Government pushed through a second EIA, apparently
before national elections in March. Both EIAs
have been strongly criticized by international
organisations including WWF for their poor quality
and lack of genuine public or international consultation.
The Bystroye Canal cuts through
the core zone of the Ukrainian Danube Delta Biosphere
Reserve, one of the 200 most important natural
areas in the world. The Danube Delta is the world’s
largest reed beds and provides important habitats
for globally threatened populations of birds and
fish, including the Red-breasted Goose, Pygmy
Cormorant as well as the giant Beluga sturgeon,
which can grow to the size of a small bus.
Michael Baltzer, WWF Danube-Carpathian
Programme
Andreas Beckmann, WWF Danube-Carpathian
Programme
End notes:
• 1) For further information
on the Bystroye report of the United Nations Inquiry
Commission under the Espoo Convention, see: http://www.unece.org/press/pr2006/06env_p05e.htm
• Olya Melen, a young lawyer
with Environment People Law, was awarded the prestigious
Goldman Prize for her work fighting the Bystroye
Canal project under the previous regime of President
Kuchma. See: http://www.goldmanprize.org/node/143.
Another staunch opponent of the project, Director
of the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Aleksandr
Voloshkevich, received WWF-Austria’s 2005 Panda
Award in recognition of his efforts to protect
the Danube Delta.
• WWF has been working in the
Danube Delta for more than 13 years to promote
conservation, restoration and sustainable management
of nature for the benefit of both people and the
environment. A Vision for the Ukrainian Danube
Delta, which was completed in 2003 with involvement
of authorities and stakeholders from the Odessa
Oblast in Ukraine as well as WWF, presents an
ambitious and inspiring plan for a desirable future
for the Ukrainian part of the Delta. WWF has been
working with regional authorities and stakeholders
to restore former wetland areas at Katlabah and
Tataru as well as to develop sustainable livelihoods
for local people. Link
