[Index]
[Russian]
Dniester cooperation to make drinking
water safer
Geneva, 22 September 2004
- The United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe (UNECE) together
with the Organization for Security and
Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) are bringing
the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine together
in a bid to clean up the river Dniester.
The river Dniester, one
of Eastern Europe’s largest, is
facing serious environmental problems
due to pollution and the impact of the
water flow regime. Its basin is home to
more than 7 million people, and the river
itself is the main source of drinking
water in the Republic of Moldova and parts
of Ukraine.
The Dniester rises in
the Ukrainian Carpathians, flows through
the Republic of Moldova and reaches Ukraine
again near the Black Sea. Much of the
pollution comes from industries located
upstream. Meanwhile Ukraine’s second
city, downstream Odessa, relies entirely
on the river for its drinking water. The
transboundary character of the river has
so far made it difficult to solve the
environmental problems and to improve
the river’s management.
Under the auspices of
UNECE and OSCE, government and civil society
representatives from the Republic of Moldova
and Ukraine met in Chisinau to officially
launch the “Transboundary Cooperation
and Sustainable Management of the Dniester
River” project.
The project, financed
by Sweden, Switzerland and the United
States, brings together government and
NGO representatives from the two riparian
countries to study the condition of the
Dniester basin and agree on the way forward
to strengthen collaboration and to improve
the river’s management.
The project puts into
practice the principles of the UNECE Convention
on the Protection and Use of Transboundary
Watercourses and International Lakes,
and involves experts from both UNECE and
OSCE.
According to Mr. Ilya
Trombitsky, Director of the NGO Eco TIRAS,
“environmental NGOs from the Republic
of Moldova and Ukraine have been lobbying
their Governments to increase cooperation
on the river Dniester for years. This
meeting marks a real breakthrough for
bilateral collaboration and for the environment
of the river basin.”
The Environment Ministries
of both the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine
also welcomed the project. Ms. Zakorchevna
(Ukraine) stated that Ukraine had sent
a high-level delegation to this meeting
because it intended to use this project
for the development of its cooperation
with the Republic of Moldova on the management
of the river Dniester. Ms. Guvir (Republic
of Moldova) agreed that it had long been
a priority for her country to develop
cooperation with Ukraine on the Dniester
and she was delighted to see that steps
were now being taken in this direction.
For more information
on this project, please contact:
Mr. Bo LIBERT, Regional Adviser
UNECE Environment and Human Settlements
Division
Palais des Nations, office 315
CH–1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Phone: +41 (0)22 917 23 96
Fax: +41 (0)22 917 01 07
E-mail: [email protected]
Ref. ECE/ENV/04/P16