Two new reports reviewing the environmental condition of the Dniester River indicate water quality problems in the lower course of the Dniester and its estuary as well as alarming declines in fish populations. The reports were presented in Moldova and Ukraine on 22 March during several events celebrating the World Water Day. They were published (in Russian-language with English summaries) on www.dniester.org, a jointly managed site devoted to the cooperation between Moldova and Ukraine to improve sustainable management of the Dniester River basin.

The reports are the result of a joint Moldovan-Ukrainian hydrochemical expedition along the Dniester River and field research of the fish populations in the Lower Dniester, supported by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) in partnership with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The goal was to collect information on water quality and bottom sediments, as well the state of the fish populations in the Dniester. At the same time, the joint work served to improve of transboundary cooperation between the two countries.

The joint Moldovan-Ukrainian hydrochemical expedition along the Dniester was conducted for the first time in 14 years during the summer of 2011. The results indicate water quality problems in the lower course of the Dniester and its estuary, while the quality can be defined as “very good” or “good” only along the first 150 kilometres from the source. This has serious consequences for water ecosystems and water use, in particular for quality of drinking water in the lower part of the basin including for the city of Odessa and its population of more than 1 million.

Similarly, joint field research of fish fauna in the Lower Dniester was conducted in May‑October 2011, for the first time since 1992. Alarmingly, the number of fish species observed had declined by 50% in the last 10 years. A decrease also in the number of commercial fish species is likely to have a direct economic impact. The report on fish populations shows that there has been a degradation of the ecosystem, and a need for joint conservation measures, as well as to revise and expand national lists of rare and endangered fish species.

The reports from the two expeditions provide a range of recommendations, including pointing out the need for a strengthened water and environment cooperation between the two countries.

With its 1,362 km, the Dniester River is one of the largest Eastern European rivers. Along with supply of drinking water, hydropower generation and fisheries are other important sectors it serves. The river starts in the Ukrainian Carpathian mountains, flows through the Republic of Moldova and re-enters Ukraine where it discharges into the Black Sea. In the Republic of Moldova, the river marks the informal border with the breakaway region of Transnistria.

The joint OSCE-UNEP-UNECE project, “Transboundary cooperation and sustainable management in the Dniester River Basin: Phase III — Implementation of the Action Programme”, is the third and final phase of a programme directed towards the development of transboundary water cooperation on the Dniester River and was funded by the Finnish and Swedish Governments. Dniester III was implemented in the framework of Environment and Security Initiative (ENVSEC) and the UNECE Water Convention Work Programme. The project achievements include:

• Development of a bilateral treaty on the sustainable management of the Dniester River, which is presently going through approval processes in the two countries.
• Improved cooperation and coordination between health authorities in the region responsible for the quality of drinking water.
• Developed transboundary cooperation on biodiversity, including the management of fish stocks.
• Improved access to and exchange of information in the basin.
• Raised awareness among stakeholders and the public about the values and threats related to the Dniester basin.
  

ENVSEC (see envsec.org) was established in 2003 and includes OSCE, the Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Eastern Europe, the United Nations Development Programme, UNECE and UNEP. ENVSEC works to assess and address environmental problems that threaten or are perceived to threaten security, societal stability and peace, human health and/or sustainable livelihoods, within and across national borders in conflict prone regions.

The UNECE Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (Water Convention) of 1992 aims to strengthen national measures and transboundary cooperation for the protection and ecologically sound management of transboundary surface waters and groundwaters. Thirty-seven States and the European Union are Parties to the Water Convention.

Organizers of the hydrochemical expedition were the Moldovan-Ukrainian working group on water-ecological monitoring and water quality control operating under the Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Moldova and the Government of Ukraine on the Joint Management and Protection of the Cross-border Waters, Centre of Strategic Ecological Research “ECOS” in Chisinau and Environmental Network “Zoi” in Geneva (Switzerland). The field research of fish fauna was organized by the International Environmental Association of River Keepers Eco-TIRAS, and involved a group of experts representing academical research institutes, protected areas, and non-governmental organizations from both riparian countries.