Legendary river
February 16, 2010
Environmentalists have warned that pressure to build new hydroelectric plants and to make the river more navigable for shipping continue to threaten the Danube, which runs a staggering 2,860 kilometers from Germany's Black Forest to the Black Sea in Romania.
Additional water regulation measures threaten the dynamism of the river - one of the Danube's most-prized qualities, according to Georg Kestel, Danube expert of the German arm of Friends of the Earth, BUND.
"What makes this river really special is that it crosses through such a great variety of landscapes in its journey from West to East. It is a very important migratory route for numerous types of animals and plants. The river is the backbone of biodiversity," Kestel told Deutsche Welle.
Most international river
Environment ministers from 14 countries that either border the Danube or belong to the river's catchment area this week agreed to adopt a five-year plan to "improve the environmental condition of the Danube and its tributaries".
"The Danube waters are shared by us all and therefore we also share the responsibility," said Mitja Bricelj, president of the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) who hosted the meeting on Tuesday (February 16) in Vienna.
"We meet to ensure that the resources of the Danube Basin are managed in an environmentally sustainable manner," Bricelj added.
The plan includes a series of measures to be implemented by 2015, including concrete efforts to reduce pollution and minimize the negative effects of man-made changes to the world's most international river.
The re-naturalization of wetlands, the creation of natural flood barriers and the upgrading of dykes are also part of the program.
More sustainable shipping
Environmental groups, such as BUND and the World Wildlife Fund, generally welcomed the plan, but they also took the opportunity to present a petition with 100,000 signatures calling for greener and more sustainable shipping projects.
In particular, green groups are campaigning against river regulation work in the Upper Danube between Straubing and Vilshofen in Germany. The planned construction of a dam and a canal would destroy the last significant free-flowing section of the river in Germany.
"Overall, we welcome it, but we do see some critical points," said Irene Lucius, senioor policy coordinator of the WWF's Danube-Carpathian program told AFP news agency.
Giving nature a helping hand
BUND expert Georg Kestel praised the moves to restore natural water meadows and to improve the continuity of the river by building fish ladders, for example, to allow their passage through dams and other man-made obstacles.
Kestel also backed the ministers' call for the introduction of phosphate-free detergents -- a problem in eastern Europe. However, he urged an EU-wide ban to make this effective.
Although 10 member countries directly border the Danube and there several more in its catchment area, international cooperation appears to be working well.
Shared waters, different problems
However, the river faces different problems in different places. Whereas in Eastern Europe the pollution of the river mainly stems from excessive levels of inadequately treated municipal sewage. In the West, agriculture is the main culprit.
And whereas many free-flowing sections and water meadows have been lost in western Europe, many remain intact further to the east. For Kestel, it is essential that the Danube's dynamic character is retained.
"The Danube is classes better than the Rhine. Shipping is very dominant there. The problem is that there are number of projects hanging over the Danube that would ruin its quality."
Author: Julie Gregson
Editor: Nathan Witkop