The Danube River Basin, a cultural and historical centre of Europe

1. 1 Reduction of pollution from agricultural point and diffuse sources through policy changes and demonstration through pilot projectsIvan ZavadskyProject ManagerUNDP GEF Danube Regional Project

2. The Danube River Basin, a cultural and historical centre of Europe

3. Structure of the presentation • The Danube River Protection Convention • EU WFD implementation • UNDP GEF Danube Regional Project: Implementing Components on Agriculture

4. 4 The Danube River Protection Convention A legal frame for co-operation to assure the protection of water and ecological resources and their sustainable use in the Danube River Basin

5. Danube River Protection Convention OBJECTIVES • Ensure sustainable and equitable water management • Ensure conservation, improvement and the rational use of surface waters and ground water • Control discharge of waste waters, inputs of nutrients and hazardous substances from point and diffuse sources of emissions • Control floods and ice hazards • Control hazards originating from accidents (warning and preventive measures) • Reduce pollution loads of the Black Sea from sources in the Danube catchment area.

6. 6 ICPDR Policies & Actions The Joint Action Programme

7. Policies and Strategies of the JAP • River Basin Management and implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive • Emission inventory and pollution reduction • Restoration of wetlands and flood plains • Transnational Monitoring Network (TNMN) and extended water quality standards • Accident warning system and prevention • Sustainable flood control and prevention • Domestic and basin wide water balance.

8. Investments and expected results(Joint Action Programme / Five Years Nutrient Reduction Plan) Investments: • Municipal waste water collection & treatment: 3.709 billion USD • Industrial waste water treatment: 0.276 billion USD • Agricultural projects and land use: 0.113 billion USD • Rehabilitation of wetlands: 0.323 billion USD Nitrogen reduction: • from point sources : 58,600 t/y • from diffuse sources : 60,000 t/y • total emission reduction : 22 % Phosphorus reduction: • from point sources : 12,000 t/y • from diffuse sources : 4,000 t/y • total emission reduction : 33 %

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10. 10 The Implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive in the Danube River Basin

11. Development of the Danube RBM Plan- preparation phase • European Commission • Common Implementation Strategy • Guidance documents • ICPDR • Strategy for development of RBM Plan • Delimitation of the DRB District (including the coastal waters of the Black Sea) • Development of issue papers and preparatory studies on special DRB topics • economic analysis • transboundary issues • public participation • Danube GIS & mapping criteria • typology & reference conditions of water bodies • artificial and heavily modified water bodies • significant pressures and impacts • effects from human activities on ground water • register of protected areas (species and habitats)

12. Agricultural Pollution Control Strategy in Line with the WFD Requirements • Updated basin-wide Emission Inventories 2002 • Article 5 of the WFD: information on the type and scale of significant anthropogenic pressures, including point and diffuse sources of pollution. • Requirements to consider land use patterns (e.g. urban, industrial, agricultural, forest).

13. Project “Harmonised Inventory of Point and Diffuse Emissions of N and P in the DRB”MONERIS • Undertaken by the Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin. • The project aim: to determine and calculate the annual nutrient emissions into the Danube river (1998 to 2000) by applying MONERIS model to the 388 sub-basins of DRB. • 7 pathways are considered: point sources (discharges from municipal waste water treatment plants and direct industrial discharges); atmospheric deposition; erosion; surface runoff; groundwater; tile drainage and paved urban areas. • Estimations of Agricultural Diffuse Pollution: 4 main nutrient emission pathways influenced significantly by agriculture –groundwater, tile drainage, soil erosion and surface run-off.

14. 14 Effect of pollution on the Black Sea

15. Significant process degrading the Black Sea • Over-fertilization of the sea by compounds of N and P, largely as a result of agricultural (late 1960s, "green revolution"), domestic and industrial sources. This over-fertilization produces eutrophication which has changed the structure of the Black Sea ecosystem. • It is estimated that the six Black Sea countries contribute about 70% of the total amount of the substances flowing to the Black Sea as waste from human activities. • The remaining 30% (from the other eleven non-coastal countries) enter the Sea via the Danube River. • Current phosphate levels appear to be roughly the same as in the 1960s but total nitrogen levels are still at least four times as those observed during that period.

16. Annual Nitrogen Load in the Danube (in kt/y), subdivided over the countries of origin, with a high estimate for the in stream denitrification (= removal rate)

17. Cooperation with the Black Sea Commission

18. Memorandum of Understanding between the International Commission for the Protection of the Black Sea (ICPBS) and the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) on Common Strategic Goals

19. Nutrient Reduction to the Black Sea • Goals: • In short and medium terms, by adopting appropriate strategies, in particular in the transition countries, that will permit economic development, whilst assuring the recovery of the agricultural and industrial sector activities, the discharge of nutrient and hazardous substances into the Black Sea shall not exceed the discharges from 1997 • In the long-term, the Black Sea ecosystems shall recover to conditions similar to those observed in the 1960s through progressive reduction of loads of anthropogenically applied nutrients and hazardous substances in all countries of the Black Sea Basin.

20. Joint Danube / Black Sea Technical Working Group Bulgaria Romania Ukraine BS members Danube members Russia ICPDR PS Georgia Joint Danube / Black Sea TWG MLIM chair Turkey EMIS chair Black Sea PS UNDP/GEF DRP UNDP/GEF BSP

21. JTWG Danube-Black Sea Work Programme • Assessment of existing monitoring systems (BSC area) • Development of monitoring programme (BSC area) • Development of ecological status indicators (BSC area) • Assessment of pollution (causes) in the BSC area and of the ecological status of the Black Sea • Development of reporting formats • Recommendations to limit discharge of nutrients and hazardous substances • Enhancing of information mechanisms

22. Nutrient Management in the Danube Basin and its Impact on the Black SeadaNUbs • General objectives: • to improve the knowledge on the sources, pathways, stocks, losses and sinks of nutrients in a large river catchment, • to improve the knowledge on the effects of nutrients • to develop, improve and combine management tools for nutrients in the Danube Basins and • to develop scenarios and prognoses for nutrient management and its effect on water quality and their consequences on the socio-economic development in the DRB.

23. UNDP GEF Danube Regional Project Strengthening the implementation capacities for the nutrient reduction and transboundary cooperation in the DRB

24. 24 The Overall Objective of the Project Complement the activities of the ICPDR required to strengthen a regional approach for solving transboundary problems. This includes the development of national policies and legislation, the definition of priority actions for pollution control, especially nutrient reduction, as well as the achieving of sustainable transboundary ecological conditions within the DRB and the Black Sea basin area.

25. 25 Project Time Frame • Phase 1 (2002-2003), Preparation • activities related to ICPDR Expert Groups, WFD support, sectors: agriculture, industry, wetlands; public participation, pilot activities etc. • Phase 2 (2004-2006), Implementation • Application of methodologies, plans, strategies and pilot projects prepared in the Phase 1

26. 26 Goals of the DRP in Short.... • Reduce Nutrient and Toxic Pollution in the Danube and Black Sea Ecosystems; • Reinforce Transboundary Cooperation and the Ecosystem Approach.

27. 27 The Approach? • Support the ICPDR & its Member States, through strengthening the ICPDR Structures, activities and policy development; • Strengthen Public Involvement in addressing key environmental problems through supporting the NGOs (DEF network), public awareness activities, communication strategy, small grants programme and access to information.

28. 28 A Summary of DRP Activities • StrengtheningInstitution (s); • Improving Management Tools; • Developing Policies; • Promoting Public Participation; • Implementing Pilot Projects.

29. 29 Strengthening Institutions • Danube Protection Commission (ICPDR); • WQ Monitoring System; • ICPDR Info System (Danubis), • Accident Prevention and Control; • Joint Danube-Black Sea Working Group; • National Level; • Inter-ministerial Committees; • Other Stakeholders: • DEF.

30. 30 Developing & Utilizing Tools • River Basin Management(EU Water Framework Directive), • Danube GIS, • Economic Instruments (Tariffs,Fines etc.) • Monitoring of Nutrients in Wetlands.

31. 31 Developing Policies • Agriculture; • Industry; • Economic Instruments; • Land Use and Wetlands; • Phosphates in Detergents.

32. 32 Supporting Pilot Projects • River Basin Management (Sava River Basin), • Agriculture, • Wetlands.

33. 33 Supporting Public Participation • Public Awareness (Communication Strategy, products & campaigns); • Small Grants Programme; • Support to DEF; • Public Participation in Developing a Danube River Basin Mgmt. Plan; • Improving Access to Information (phase 2) for Addressing Hot Spots

34. UNDP GEF Danube Regional Project Output 1.2: Policies for the Control of Agricultural Point and Non-point Sources of Pollution Output 1.3: Pilot Projects on Agricultural Pollution Reduction

35. Policies for the Control of Agricultural Point and Non-point Sources of Pollution • Up-dating the basin-wide inventory on priority agricultural point and non-point sources of pollution (Phase 1) • Reviewing the relevant legislation, existing policy programmes and actual state of enforcement in the DRB with respect to promotion and application of best agricultural practices • Reviewing the inventory on important agrochemicals (nutrients etc.) in terms of quantities of utilization, their misuse in application, their environmental impacts and potential for reduction • Identifying the main institutional, administrative and funding deficiencies (including complementary measures) to reduce pollutants • Introducing or, where existing, further developing concepts for the application of BAP in all DRB countries

36. Policies for the Control of Agricultural Point and Non-point Sources of Pollution(2) • Inventory/description of policy instruments/programmes • Assessment of adequacy (e.g. state of enforcement) • Description of main deficiencies • Review of BAP projects/programmes • Assessment of nutrient reduction capacity of BAP projects/programmes identified • Gaps/deficiencies in the implementation of BAP

37. Policies for the Control of Agricultural Point and Non-point Sources of Pollution(3) • Develop basin-wide unifying concept of BAP according to need for intervention that is identified – develop the “hierarchy of BAP” in more detail, taking into account national circumstances • Take account of EU requirements where appropriate • Prepare concept paper for each of the 11 DRB countries and translate into appropriate national languages for purposes of consultation • Discuss the new concept with governments, farming communities and NGOs in the DRB and disseminate the results and conclusions

38. Pilot Projects on Agricultural Pollution Reduction • Analyzing existing programmes and pilot projects promoting BAP (especially regarding animal farming and manure handling, as well as organic farming) in DRB countries, and assess nutrient reduction capacities (Phase 1) • Developing practical concepts for the introduction respectively promotion of appropriate agricultural practices and manure handling in the central and downstream DRB countries by taking into account national demand and international markets • Preparing and implementing for the central and lower DRB countries typical pilot projects (especially in UA, MD, RO, BG, YU and B-H) to train and support farmers in the application of best agricultural practice

39. Pilot Projects on Agricultural Pollution Reduction (2) • Clearly defined mechanisms for promoting BAP through the agricultural extension services • Consultation workshop on the design and development of selection criteria for pilot projects promoting BAP in the priority countries • List of potential projects in the central and lower DRB countries (especially in UA, MD, RO, BG, YU and B-H) to train and support farmers in the application of best agricultural practice • Preliminary implementation plans

40. Danube Regional Project Web Page • http://www.icpdr.org/undp-drp

41. Thank you for your attention!

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