Danube Watch 2/2017 - A Day of Action for the Black Sea
A Day of Action for the Black Sea
The International Black Sea Action Day 31st October 2017
Black Sea
The Black Sea is the world's most isolated sea, connected to other oceans via the Mediterranean Sea through the Bosphorus, the Dardanelles and Gibraltar straits, and linked with the Sea of Azov in the northeast through the Kerch Strait. The catchment area of the Black Sea is six times larger than its surface, with the Danube being its main tributary. The Commission on the Protection of the Black Sea Against Pollution (or Black Sea Commission) is responsible for its protection and sustainable management.
International Black Sea Day 2017 commemorates the 21st anniversary of the signing of the first Black Sea Strategic Action Plan (SAP). The BS SAP’s objectives are:
- to bring a better future for the 16 million people from six countries resident on the shores of the Black Sea
- to commit the regional governments to undertake serious action in order to make a real difference to the rehabilitation and recovery of the sea
- to celebrate the lifework of the many people who devote their time and energy to helpprotect the environment
The Black Sea countries, Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania, the Russian Federation, Turkey and Ukraine, signed the Convention on the Protection of the Black Sea against Pollution (Bucharest Convention) on 21st April 1992 and the Black Sea Strategic Action Plan on 31st October 1996.
Although this Action Plan was revised and signed by the ministers of these six countries on 17th April 2009 in Sofia, 31st October has been the date on which the “International Black Sea Day” has been celebrated by the Black Sea countries every year since 1996. This is a regional event designed to raise public awareness of the need for regional cooperation to protect and conserve the Black Sea, and is celebrated in the six riparian countries simultaneously.
The Black Sea Commission is an intergovernmental organisation responsible for the implementation of the Convention on the Protection of the Black Sea against Pollution, and sets the legal framework required for regional cooperation and the activities necessary to reduce pollution and enhance the protection of the marine environment. The parties to this Convention, Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania, the Russian Federation, Turkey and Ukraine are all represented in the Commission. The Permanent Secretariat of the Black Sea Commission is located in Istanbul, Turkey.
Professor Halil Ibrahim Sur, the Executive Director of the Permanent Secretariat of the Black Sea Commission, states: “the International Black Sea Day is a significant day because it attracts attention to the importance of cooperation required for the protection of the Black Sea. The Black Sea is one of the most important and vulnerable ecosystems in the world, but has also a great economic value for the millions of people living in the six riparian countries.
The Black Sea Commission helps these countries to find joint solutions to tackle both existing and potential problems in order to protect this shared heritage. It is necessary that the countries represented in this Commission shall strive to increase their efforts towards protection and sustainable use of this unique Large Marine Ecosystem.”
The Black Sea Commission is the regional governing body created to implement the Bucharest Convention signed by the six coastal countries in 1992. On 31st October 1996, the Black Sea countries also signed the first Black Sea Strategic Action Plan for the Rehabilitation and Protection of the Black Sea, later on amended in Sofia in 2009. This plan defines the policy measures, actions, and activities required to achieve the environmental objectives of the Bucharest Convention. The Black Sea Strategic Action Plan recognises that collective action is required from all Black Sea countries to reduce the impact of pollution on the sea’s ecosystems.
