Well known for its natural treasures, the
\nDanube-Carpathian area is in jeopardy, according to the UN Environmental
\nProgram, the World Wildlife Fund, and the Eurac Research Centre. <\/p>\n
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Illegal logging, trading in protected species,
\nmost notably sturgeon, and diverting mountain springs, are threatening
\nbiodiversity in the area, in spite of European and international legislation on
\nnature protection. This year, UNESCO, noting their exceptional natural value,
\ndeclared a part of its world heritage 24,000 ha of virgin forests in Romania,
\nas well as 5,500 ha of beech forests and virgin forests in the Carpathians and
\nthe Podillya region of Ukraine. In addition, forests in the Carpathians are
\nhome to the largest populations of large carnivores, which, in spite of
\ninternational legislation and EU conventions, continue to be poached. WWF
\nRomania has been working in this region for over 10 years, running projects to
\npreserve the biological diversity of wild species and natural ecosystems.
\nOrieta Hulea, WWF Romania general manager, told us: <\/p>\n
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Romania is of inestimable value, with its
\nvirgin or near-virgin forests. WWF Romania, along with other environmental
\norganisations, has begun an ample process of identifying these areas. We
\nstarted with an estimation made for about 200,000 ha, six or seven years ago.
\nThen we started field evaluations, with
\nsystematic scanning of surfaces, but the process of including these surfaces,
\nconfirmed as virgin forests by scientific process, in the Virgin Forest
\nCatalogue, which was set up last year, is a laborious one. Where forests are
\nunder state property, the process is easier, they go under strict protection
\nright away. However, in terms of private forests, the process encounters
\nobstacles, because forest owners agree to have forests protected with great
\ndifficulty. Which is why, in order to protect forests that go into the
\ncatalogue and make the process easier, we need to have available compensation
\nfor private forest owners. Then we confront illegal logging. Things have been
\ndone, things have improved through closer monitoring and control, but illegal
\nlogging is still going on. That is why Romania needs to set up a Forestry
\nInspector General Office, a system of tracing wood mass, allowing the real time
\nidentification of such situations, followed by intervention, in conclusion:
\ncontrol and intervention.<\/p>\n
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In the last three decades, sturgeon fishing has
\ngone down over 99% all over the world, as the populations were severely
\ndepleted. In the Danube basin we find the last viable sturgeon populations on
\nthe entire continent. In order to protect this category of fish, the ban on
\nfishing sturgeon has been extended by five more years last year. Of the six
\nsturgeon species in the Danube basin, one is extinct, and the other five are
\nthreatened. Orieta Hulea, WWF Romania General Manager, told us about it: <\/p>\n
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Sturgeon fishing is strictly prohibited.
\nSpecial permits are issued only for scientific research. However, we are faced
\nwith poaching, and there we have a long way to go. We published a report a few
\nyears ago on caviar smuggling. Some seizures have been made, a year ago a huge
\nquantity of meat and caviar was seized. The Border Police is making efforts to
\nthis end, but these efforts have to be concentrated, and we worked very closely
\nwith fishing communities along the Danube. There are social problems there, and
\npoaching is a way of supplementing resources in those communities. Therefore we
\nhave to offer all sorts of opportunities, mechanisms that offer additional
\nopportunities to the people inclined to run afoul of the law, allowing them to
\nsupplement their income.<\/p>\n
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Experts also warn of the extinction of
\nprotected bird species in the Danube-Carpathian area. Tens of millions of birds
\nare hunted illegally in the Mediterranean area every year, and that goes for
\nRomania as well. Orieta Hulea: <\/p>\n
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\n
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Right this year, the authorities in Italy
\nseized from Italian hunters birds that had been shot in Romania. We are talking
\nabout small birds that reach West European countries. Some of the birds were
\nunder international protection. There was another case, at the border with
\nHungary, where several thousands of birds were seized. It seems that there is a
\ndemand in Western countries, especially Italy, for these birds, which are
\nserved in restaurants as delicatessen. The impact is devastating for these
\nsmall birds, with an important role in the ecosystem.<\/p>\n
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The Danube-Carpathian area is believed by the
\nauthors of the study to be one of the most important regional ecosystems in the
\nworld, it needs sustainable management and close collaboration between national
\nagencies and the states in the region in terms of information exchange and law
\nenforcement. In addition, what is needed is enforcement of EU laws on nature
\nand wildlife, including the European Union’s action plan against smuggling wild
\nspecies. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Well-known for its natural treasures, the Danube-Carpathian area is at risk, according to the UN Environmental Program, the World Wildlife Fund, and the Eurac Research Centre.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":152970,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[44315],"tags":[44378],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-153082","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-green-planet","tag-danube-carpathian-area"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n