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Violation of conventional commitments in the environment sphere by Ukraine

Doc. 10331
 15 October 2004

Motion for a resolution
 presented by Mr Olteanu and others

This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only the members who have signed it

          The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe:

1.       Aware that implementing the principles of the rule of law and cooperation is one of the key means of achieving greater unity between Council of Europe member states, which is the Organisation's main aim;

2.       Considering that, for the Organisation's statutory aim to be fulfilled, it is necessary for the honouring of member states' obligations arising under the Statute and conventions to which they are party to be more effectively monitored, including in the sphere of environmental protection, by its Monitoring Committee, under the terms of Resolution 1115 (1997);

3.       Drawing attention to the importance of applying Recommendation 1637 (2003) on pan-European environmental cooperation, as well as the binding nature of the relevant legal instruments, including the Bern Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (ETS no. 104);

4.       Noting that the Danube Delta is one of the most important centres of biological diversity in Europe and home to species threatened worldwide, features on the UNESCO World Heritage list and is also protected by the Diploma awarded by the Council of Europe;

5.       Concerned by the inauguration by the Ukrainian authorities of the Bystroye shipping canal in the protected natural reserve of the Danube Delta, in the absence of an objective environmental impact assessment and despite much criticism from the non-governmental organisations of the Council of Europe and the European Commission;

6.       Taking note of the draft Recommendation of the Standing Committee of the Bern Convention, which considers that "the excavation of the canal and its future use is likely to cause serious adverse environmental damage and change the hydrological regime of part of the delta";

7.       Noting that the Ukrainian authorities are unwilling to cooperate fully and effectively with neighbouring states, with whom they share responsibility for protecting the Danube Delta, and with the bodies of the different international conventions applicable, such as the Standing Committee of the Bern Convention and the Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention on wetlands;

8.       Calls on the Ukrainian authorities to honour their commitments arising under the international conventions ratified and cease work on the Bystroye Canal until such time as a credible environmental impact assessment of the project's consequences has been prepared, by the competent international bodies;

9.       Invites Ukraine to cooperate fully and effectively with Romania and the Republic of Moldova, according to the letter and the spirit of international law applicable in the spheres of the environment and transfrontier cooperation and urges all three countries to ratify the Agreement on the creation and management of a transfrontier nature protection area in the natural reserves of the Danube Delta and lower reaches of the Prut (doc. STRAREP (2000)8), signed in Bucharest on 5 June 2000 under the auspices of the Council of Europe and not yet in force;

Signed [1]:
OLTEANU, Ionel, Romania, SOC
ATES, Abd�lkadir, Turkey, SOC
BARTUMEU CASSANY, Jaume, Andorra, SOC
BOUGAS, Ioannis, Greece, EPP/CD
BUZATU, Gheorghe, Romania, NR
CLIVETI, Minodora, Romania, SOC
COIFAN, Viorel, Romania, LDR
COSARCIUC, Valeriu, Moldova, LDR
CUBREACOV, Vlad, Moldova, EPP/CD
de PUIG I OLIV�, Llu�s Maria, Spain, SOC
DORIC, Miljenko, Croatia, LDR
FERN�NDEZ AGUILAR, Adolfo, Spain, EPP/CD
FRUNDA, Gy�rgy, Romania, EPP/CD
GROSS, Andreas, Switzerland, SOC
JURGENS, Erik, Netherlands, SOC
KROUPA, František, Czech Republic, EPP/CD
LAMBERT, Geert, Belgium, SOC
MANZELLA, Andrea, Italy, SOC
MIMICA, Neven, Croatia, SOC
PATEREU, Riorita, Moldova, EPP/CD
PRISACARU, Ghiorghi, Romania, SOC
RUSTAMYAN, Armen, Armenia, SOC
TOROSYAN, Tigran, Armenia, NR

[1]

SOC
EPP
EDG
LDR
UEL
NR

Socialist Group
Group of the European People’s Party
European Democratic Group
Liberal, Democratic and Reformers’ Group
Group of the Unified European Left
Not registered in a group