SOME PROBLEMS OF POLLUTION, RATIONAL USES
OF THE BLACK SEA RESOURCES AND EXCHANGE OF DATA
V.I. Mikhailov, T.A. Gavrilova, R.J. Lisovsky
Ministry for Ecology and Natural Resources of Ukraine
Ukrainian Scientific Centre of the Ecology of Sea
(UkrSCES), Odessa, Ukraine
The Azov-Black Sea basin is a unique warm basin of Ukraine. Its recreational importance is really unique.
Now the Black Sea is an object of economic activity of six independent states. Fig 1. The fact is that the states laying on the coast of the Black sea basin are not rich enough and can not invest in the development of technologies and waste water treatment plants, the ecosystem of the sea is in a crisis condition.
UkrSCES, being the main organization of the Minecology and natural resources of Ukraine on the sea natural usage and Regional Activity centre on Pollution monitoring and Assessment, constantly carry out complex long term monitoring investigations of the Black and Azov seas. The modern ecological condition of waters of the Odessa Bay, urban beaches, and also water areas of the main ports are of vital interest for ecologists.
For the rescue of the system of the Black Sea in 1992 in Bucharest (Romania) was signed the Convention on the protection of the Black Sea against pollution, which Ukraine ratified it in 1994. In the development of the rules of the Convention in Odessa a meeting of the Ministers of Ecology of 6 countries was carried out and the Odessa declaration in 1993 was signed, in Odessa. According to the fulfilment of the Odessa Declaration by the World ecological fund an international program on investigation of ecological problems of the Black Sea was organized.
For carrying out the program in six countries Activity centres on the following directions were organized:
§ Bulgaria: the Activity Centre on the Environmental and Safety Aspects of shipping (Varna);
§ Georgia: the Activity centre on the conservation of Biological Diversity (Batumi);
§ Romania: the Activity centre on Fisheries and other Marine Living Resources (Constanta);
§ Russia: the Activity centre on the Development of Common Methodologies for Integrated Coastal Zone Management (Krasnodar);
§ Turkey: the Activity centre on Control of Pollution from land based Sources (Istanbul);
§ Ukraine: the Activity centre on Pollution monitoring and Assessment (Odessa);
The work of the Activity centres consists in co-ordination of the appropriate works on ecological problems of the Black Sea. Fig 2.
As a result of three-years joint work of all Black Sea countries the basic priorities and prime tasks on the Rehabilitation of the Black sea ecosystem where determined.
In each country “Hot spots” are determined “which give up to 85 % of all the Black Sea pollution. For Ukraine these Hot spots in the Black Sea are allocated as:
§ 3 points are on the region of Odessa and Ilichevsk there are non perfect waste water treatment plants;
§ 5 points are on the region of Crimea - absence of modern waste water treatment plants Balaklava, Evpatoria, Yalta, Gurzuf, Sevastopol;
§ 1 point on the region of Kerch - ecologically dangerous enterprise Kamuchburunsk;
§ 1 point region Krasnoperekopsk - ecologically dangerous Krasnoperekopsky brome plant.
The reconstruction of the designated above plants gives appreciable result in the improvement of the Black Sea ecosystem. Fig 3.
In 1998 on the basis of investigation in the Black Sea within the International program a strategic plan of actions was prepared and signed by the ministers of ecology of 6 countries. On this basis, each of the countries should prepare national plans of actions on the improvement of ecological conditions.
Within the framework of performance of the Strategic plan of actions Ukraine “The Concept of the Protection and Rehabilitation of the Environment of the Azov and Black seas was prepared. And literally by the end of 1999 a State program of Ukraine of protection and restoration of the Azov and Black seas was prepared and co-ordinated with the Cabinet of Ministers.
Thus a scientific - legal base for implementation of measures now is created which gives a push for the performance of basic measures on the improvement of the Black Sea system.
The analysis of the existing legal base and carried out investigations within the framework of the International programs show, that the priorities on revival of the Black sea ecosystem essentially have changed. The data of UkrSCES completely confirm it and for more precise analysis of the ecological condition of the Black Sea it is necessary conditionally to divide water areas at some levels, in which various mechanisms of receipt of the basic polluting substances in the ecosystem and ways removing them from the ecosystem. Fig 4, Fig 5.
Recreational zone – has the most testing anthropogenous influence for many reasons. Into the Black sea (in the recreation zone within the limits of Ukraine for the last years) is discharged practically without treatment about 7.4 mln м3 of waste water, about 195 mln м3 not enough treated.
The recreational zone receives annually about 31 mln tons of suspended substances etc. It is pertinently to notice that these figures do not reflect volumes of discharge, since recently the construction of sanatoriums, camping, places of public usage and other objects in the recreational zone are carried out unsystematically, with infringement of the legislation of Ukraine. The phenomenon is even more aggravated in connection with the acceptance of the law about land privatization, whereas till now there is no norm-legal base on the use of the recreational zone of the Black and Azov seas.
The modern state of the recreational zone of the Black Sea is characterised by significant pollution of waters, bottom sediments and sand of beaches.
Chlore organic (DDT, HCCH), polychlorine bephynils (PCB) synthetic surface - active agents (SSAA), petroleum hydrocarbons (PH) polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), most harmful part of petroleum and first of all benz-a-pyren, phenols, dissolved organic, some heavy metals in those or other amounts are practically constant components of coastal waters and bottom sediments. The level of their contents in 1999 has not changed a lot in comparison with 1998. The average concentration of (COP) in waters of the recreational zone makes about 7 Ng/l (Maximum Allowable Concentration (MAC) in sea water - absence). In percentage terms sizes of the basic pesticide (DDT) in some cases reach 40 %, that states about the duration of the half-life disintegration of pesticides in sea water.
By the last years the quantity of petroleum was stabilised in waters of the recreational zone of Odessa region. Their concentrations change from 0.00 mg/l (MAC 0.05 mg/l). However that the Black sea becomes a transport
corridor of petroleum transportation and the quantity) transported by tankers on the water aquatory of the Black sea in 1998 has made about 50 mln tons, and the plans on 2000 make 84 mln tons. Besides the construction of oil terminals in all 6 Black Sea countries, can result in significant pollution of the marine waters by petroleum hydrocarbons many times over.
Concentration of the polyaromatic part of petroleum hydrocarbons in the recreational zone changes in limits from 5 up to 29 mg/l (more than MAC). The largest part of polyaromatic hydrocarbons comes on their most stable representative Benz-а-pyren (up to 60 %). For the last year\’s concentration of these polluting substances practically have not decreased.
The synthetic surface - active agents (washing-up liquids) are present in the recreational zone always in values exceeding MAC (100 mg/l) up to 250mg/l. And recently their huge quantity of foreign manufacture, physic-chemical properties have appeared the influence on the organism and the period of disintegration is not known. This circumstances assumes occurrence of unknown allergic skin diseases.
The traces of heavy metals in the recreational zone of the Black Sea are meet practically everywhere. The concentrations of arsenic, chrome, lithium, strontium, mercury in some cases exceed MAC. Other metals are in limits below MAC, but in 10 times exceed their natural contents in the sea environment. In bottom sediments their significant concentration takes place.
Polychlorinebephynils (waste materials of paint industry etc.) in the recreational zone are met everywhere in significant concentrations (more than 25 Ng/l), the MAC makes 0 Ng/l. This indicates the chronic pollution of the recreational zone by this dangerous substance.
In the water of the recreational zone dissolved organic substance in huge quantity is present. It proves to be true by high values of oxidizability, exceeding 5 mg О2/l.
Also significant concentrations of phosphorus, nitrogen in the recreational zone, results, at the end to the reduction of oxygen dissolved in water, up to values at which the extensive zones of the dead phenomena and occurrence of hydrogen sulphide are observed.
Thus the recreational zone of the North western part of the Black sea within the limits of the Odessa region, is in the crisis condition, despite of, that many enterprises being potential polluters, work not in complete capacity. Fig6, Fig 7.
The Odessa Bay and shelf zone of the sea is also considerably polluted. Practically average concentrations of the basic polluting substances essentially do not differ from the pollution in the shelf zone and Odessa Buy.
In the recreational zone phenols are met everywhere, the concentrations exceed the MAC more than 20 times.
The shelf zone practically also is polluted by petroleum in concentrations in some cases exceeding the MAC. The significant concentrations of them are in bottom sediments. Average concentrations of polyaromatic hydrocarbons little bit decrease.
Heavy metals are met in waters of the shelf zone of the Black Sea in very small quantities.
The significant concentrations of organic substances and biogenic elements PN are met everywhere in all areas of the shelf zone. Their significant concentrations cause the phenomenon of eutrophication in the North - Western part of the Black Sea. In 1999 the territory covered by eutrophication in the North - Western part of the Black Sea has occupied about 40 %, and brought irreparable harm to biological stocks of the Black sea, and also recreational stocks.
In Fig.8 is given a presentation of the zoning of marine water areas by criteria of quality, data of UkrSCES , 2000 . The classification was fulfilled according to the Manuel on Environmental Quality Objectives for the Protection of the Black Sea Ecosystem. The method of zoning the marine waters is a method of UkrSCES with applying GIS technologies.
In all regions of the Odessa Buy at the bottom there is a layer of silt, which in some cases exceeds 3 cm, this phenomenon is observed in the last 10 years and practically destroys all alive, living at the bottom in our region.
The carried out analysis convincingly specifies on the degradation of the Black Sea ecosystem. Despite of the reduction of industrial wastes, as the quantity of household discharges and organic are constantly increased putting irreparable damage to the ecosystem.
In this connection the questions of protection and rational use of resources of the Black Sea should be constant in the field of attention of all states of the coastal zone, and in the Odessa region to the services that are responsible for this.
Unfortunately, in the sphere of natural usage in the Black sea, in the past there was no detached file of the ecology-economic requirements, standards, specifications, norm legal base regulating the economic activity in sea water areas, international rivers ensuring rational use of natural sea and river environment in the view of the requirements of protection of the natural environment. An example to that are the roughest infringements from the Romanian side by dumps into the river Danube, as there are no rules of law under the responsibility of Romania for pollution.
In Ukraine the first stage of the legal reform in the sphere of natural usage is completed, that is confirmed by the Law of Ukraine on protection of the natural environment, Water code, Law on the State ecological expertise of Ukraine. By these documents, the main strategic aim of Ukraine in the protection of the natural environment is:
§ Maintenance of ecological safety of the present and future of generations;
§ Updating and savings of the biodiversity of balance (at local, regional and global levels);
§ Rational and complex use of all of the natural environment potential of Ukraine;
§ Consecutive decision of problems of development of the economy of Ukraine on the way of achieving complete biodiversity.
§ In this connection, before the government of Ukraine many ecological tasks are put along that are connected:
§ With improvement of the ecological state of Dnieper basin and quality of drinking water;
§ Termination of pollution of the Black and Azov seas and improvement of their ecological condition.
At the present stage of socio economic development conditions and preconditions of a concrete definition of ecological policy of the states, expansion of the economic methods and ecology-economic specifications in the regulation sea natural usage already are formed.
It predetermines necessity of formation of qualitatively new ecology-economic and the legal normative base of sea natural usage and decision of problems of prevention of a ecology-economic crisis in the Black and Azov Sea basin. The basic ways of development and the formation of the normative-methodical base of sea natural usage in Ukraine are:
§ Classification of natural resources and quality of the sea environment with orientation to international standards. Creation of environment-resource quality of recreational zones of Ukraine and, further, the whole Black Sea;
§ Standardisation of the system of parameters of monitoring investigation at the international level;
§ Perfection of methodical and normative base of ecological regulation of natural usage in the coastal territories and sea water areas;
§ Development of scientific - proved criteria for definition of economic and ecological priorities in the sphere of economic activity (various patterns of ownership) on water areas and adjacent territories;
§ Development of theoretical and methodical base of formation of the system of payments for deterioration of the quality of natural environment;
§ Perfection of theoretical and methodical base formation of payment for pollution of the sea water areas in the view of their legal status, kinds of sources of pollution, specificity of resource of ecological potential of water areas;
§ Perfection of the system of payments for uses of sea resources and sea water areas;
§ Development of the base of the financial-credit relations in the field of protection and restoration of the Black and Azov seas;
§ Development and acceptance of laws, legislative instructions in the sphere of sea natural usage and protection of sea environment.
§ Thus, one of the first priorities should be:
§ Recreational facilities of the Black-Azov seas - food cycles of agriculture, social - ecological sphere of service.
§ The second group should be formed by group of Marine facility cycles (foreign trade, oceanic fishery etc.).
§ The third group of priorities should contain scientific technology (electronics, instrument making, which exclude discharge of pollution).
§ The urgent measures concern to:
§ Inventory and ecological certification of all enterprises and ecological dangerous objects, territories, water areas, regions, cities, adjacent states of the Black-Azov sea basin;
§ Development and signing of an International convention on economic zones in the Black and Azov seas;
§ Preparation of the Law of the coastal and recreational zone of the sea;
§ Ecological norms of the economic activity with the account of the assimilation capacity of separate regions, first of all the zones of recreation, reserved territories and the sea in whole by chemical toxic parameters;
§ Introduction of a special mode of natural usage within the limits of the 3kilometre recreational zone of the sea and coast with obligatory state control;
§ Bringing the quality of the Black Sea water up to the requirements of the international standards.
Related articles::