HC Deb 16 September 2004 vol 424 cc1660-1WS
Paul Flynn

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2004,Official Report, column 1340W, on the Bastroe Channel, what the findings were of the independent environmental impact assessment of the Bastroe Channel project by experts appointed by the Council of Europe. [187615]

Mr. Morley

The report of the independent on the spot appraisal conducted on behalf of the Standing Committee of the Bern Convention on 22–24 July 2004 will propose that the Standing Committee make the following recommendations to the Government of Ukraine:-

  1. 1. to immediately suspend ongoing works in the Bystre canal estuary and abandon implementation of phase two of the project, for the purpose of preventing any significant modification of natural habitats of species listed in appendices I and II of the Convention and settled in the neighbouring maritime and shoreline areas; to carry out in-depth monitoring in physical and biological terms of the evolution of the Bystre estuary and canal;
  2. 2. to act on the recommendations set out in the UNESCO/Ramsar appraisal report (October 2003), which called for a fuller and more in-depth environmental impact study, analysing and comparing the costs to the public of the possible alternatives and the consequences of the works at transfrontier level;
  3. 3. to organise an international workshop in autumn 2004, under the auspices of the Council of Europe, with a view to drawing up a strategic plan for the sustainable development of the Vilkova region. This event, held at the invitation of the Prime Minister of the Ukraine, should bring together. alongside the ministries responsible inter alia for regional planning, environment, tourism and transport, representatives of scientific bodies (Academy of Scienc es, Kyiv University, Institute of Ecology etc), local authorities (municipality of Vilkova) and local NGOs, as well as the main international organisations concerned by the project (MAB/UNESCO, Bonn/AEWA, Bern, Ramsar conventions and ICPDR).
  4. invite the other two countries signatory to the trilateral agreement on cooperation in the natural reserves of the Danube delta and lower reaches of the Prut, namely Moldova and Romania, to participate in this event.
    5. 1661W
  5. 5. to ask for the assistance of international organisations to draw up this plan, in particular WWF International and IUCN, and that of the multi lateral lensing agencies for its implementation (EU, EBRD, World Bank etc);
  6. 6. to reinforce protection of the active part of the delta by including the delta isle of Limba, located close to the mouth of the Chilia arm, right bank, in the core zone of the biosphere reserve, as well as the habitats of major ecological interest, lying to the south of Vilkova and currently included in the reserve's buffer and transit zones.

It is expected that the Bureau of the Standing Committee, meeting this month, will request that this report be placed on the agenda of the Standing Committee annual meeting on 29 November for consideration, together with a draft recommendation which the Standing Committee will be invited to adopt.

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