| ECOLOGICAL CRISIS IN THE BLACK SEA (14.11.2007) |
| (2007-11-14) |
| Last updated: 2007-11-14 18:07 EET |
Almost closed-off, and much smaller than the Mediterranean or the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea is by no means exempt from devastating storms. Last week, off shore of the Russian northern coasts, 30 meter per second gale-force winds and giant grade six and seven waves sank ten ships, whose toxic cargo – hydrocarbons and sulfur – were spilled into the sea. Almost 2000 tons of crude oil were spilled in the Black Sea after the storm destroyed a Russian tanker. Hundreds of soldiers are participating in clean-up operations.
Upon Moscow’s request, Romania, as a Black Sea country, has sent a heavy duty crane and a clean-up ship to the disaster area. According to experts, the crude oil spot in the strait that links the Black Sea to the Azov Sea is the most serious ecological disaster ever to be seen in that region. The effects of the oil spill will be long lasting. Tens of thousands of birds have died and many others need urgent help to survive. The new catastrophe has hit a Black Sea that is already seriously polluted.
Toxic substances are discharged into this sea by the Danube countries, starting from the springs of the Danube to where it meets the sea at the delta, plus its tributaries. Pollutants are also carried by other big rivers that also flow into the Black Sea, such as the Niester and the Dnieper, further aggravating the ecological crisis. Part of the same eco- system, the Danube Delta is in its turn threatened by the effects of the deep navigation canal built by Ukraine in the area.
The warnings given by ecology organisations, western administrations and neighboring Romania have gone practically unheard by Kiew. There is a high risk that the canal might condemn to extinction a number of rare species of fish and birds in this unique area. The Delta is included in the UNESCO heritage and located, for its most part, on Romanian territory.
(Bogdan Matei)
|
2025-04-04
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