1oil Terminals Marine Research And Ecological Safety Center Of National Academy Of Science Of Ukraine
Odessa Sea Commercial Port in Ecological Problem Focus
A.Y. Shulte1, N.P. Pavlyuk2, S.К. Dolinskiy3
1Oil Terminals Marine Research and Ecological Safety Center
of National Academy of Science of Ukraine
2Odessa Sea Commercial Port
3State Ecological Inspection of the Black Sea
Ministry of Ecology and Resources of Ukraine, Odessa
The Black Sea ecological system pollution problem is becoming more actual as this area is a part of Trans European and Euro-Asian transport corridors. So now oil products content in the Black Sea has reached 6 maximum permissible concentrations. As the same time there are other pollutants and hydrogen sulfide zone rise. Besides, neither on the Black Sea nor in any other country there is modem response basis for oil pollution in shelf zone. Also up to now on the international level there is no regulatory and law basis on economic zones. Due to all these factors the work of all international and national organizations connected with oil pollution caused by emergency liquidation is determined to be inefficient.
Not once coastal states announced the Black Sea marine environment protection, but the most significant results were reached in 1992 and 1993 when Agreement on its Pollution Protection was adopted by Bucharest convention and Odessa declaration. As a continuation of these two regional instruments in 1996 the Black Sea economic cooperation countries adopted strategic plan of actions on the Black Sea recovery and protection. It is a program document in which there are strict restrictions in all actions concerning marine environment. However, beforehand oil transport problem covered quite narrow area of economic tasks, mainly, concerning the Soviet Union export commitments provision. At present it is a key to define the Black Sea countries mutual relations in the sphere of transport systems ecological security. In such case ecological aspects of the problem attain not only special nature protection, social and economical character but also political as taking into consideration these items, technological decisions taken on national or
international level are evaluated as permissible or with extremely high risk. These questions were reflected in the decisions of the Black Sea economic co-operation countries business- conference in Istanbul, 28.04.97, during the Black Sea co-operation countries Foreign Ministers\’ meeting in Kiev, 24.10.97, the Black Sea cities Mayors\’ Assembly in Emit, OJ .11.97, during the CIS ministers\’1 meeting in Yalta, 14.05.98.
As to the first quarter of the XXI century prospects the Black Sea oil and oil products transport is becoming a key problem of Ukraine. It is an evidence of urgent ecological problem of their transport demanding pressing solving on the national and international levels. In this aspect traditional approach is not efficient enough and is not able to cause drastic environment improvement even in case of necessary financial and material provision. It is necessary to change in whole the main concept of Odessa Sea Commercial Port Oil Terminal ecological situation, to shift accent from evaluation and control to administration functions, to establish the system of ecological processes management and ecological ideology forming. This concept completely coincide with resolutions of Ecology and Natural Resources Ministry, Ministry of Transport, Emergency Situations Ministry, Foreign Affairs Ministry, Odessa Sea Commercial Port and Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine Decree No 766 dated 01.06.98 "On elaboration and carrying out of the project "Multipurpose ecological permanent complex "Ecoport" in Odessa on the basis of intellectual and property complex of Oil Terminals Marine Research and Ecological Safety Center of National Academy of Science of Ukraine. The Center is situated on the territory of Odessa Sea Port Oil Terminal.
Elaborated by the scientists of Oil Terminals Marine Research and Ecological Safety Center of National Academy of Science of Ukraine together with Ukrainian scientific center of Marine Ecology of Ecology and Natural Resources Ministry concept of"Ecoport" project creation and carrying out is intended to solve ecological tasks as integral element of industrial activities based on ecologically secure, energy saving and scientific technologies. This project includes five blocks: "Ecoport-Service", "Ecoport-Water Area", "Ecoport-Proving Ground", "Ecoport-Extremum", and "Ecoport-Inform».
The project scientific grounds are based on offers concerning creation of productive functioning ecologically secure constructions in ports in correspondence with system based on blocks principle, which permits to use relatively simple hierarchical scheme of administration, including elements reverse links for fulfillment control and efficient optimization (correction) of taken decisions.
The system provides creation of data basis with characteristics of transported cargoes, transport means, used for sea transportation with the aim of differential approach to existing cargo handling works technologies, working berths and equipment, measures on prevention of overloading and emergency oil and other dangerous cargoes pollution, and also marine pollution with solid substances, identification of non-sanctioned jettisoning, etc.
In the process of ecological security system introduction it is provided to have active information exchange among the Black Sea Ports to organize concerted actions in case of emergency threat.
Thus, elaboration and carrying out of "Ecoport" project in Odessa Sea Commercial Port will provide with opportunity of ecological component development in other ports in Ukraine.
It will permit to increase their capacities, to correspond international security standards. Consequently, it will increase economy openness, will favor external economic links, and will take away a number of obstacles of technological and legal character for co-operation with international transport companies. Besides, project "Ecoport" realization will permit to secure port infrastructure against possible ecological inspectors\’ administrative sanctions.
As a result security of investments made directly into port equipment will increase and it will speed up the Project introduction with further prospects to copy ecologically secure technologies in other ports and the Black Sea Economic Co-operation Countries.
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