Project Proposal

DANUBE, EUROPEAN RIVER OF COOPERATION - ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS

Author and coordinator:: Prof. dr Miroslav Kopečni

Introduction

The Iron Gate Dam and the hydropower plant (HPP) erected there generate a significant percentage of electricity for two countries - Romania and FR Yugoslavia. The energy produced is vitally needed for these two neighboring countries, since both belong to un-developed world of the former socialist block. This especially holds true for Yugoslavia, because Yugoslavia at the moment can only rely, apart from the hydropower, on low quality brown coal. This coal, burned in coal power plants, is major pollutant in Yugoslavia, and in Romania, as well.

Problem

Iron Gate HPP has been in operation now for over 20 years. Apart from useful energy, the HPP produces numerous ecological problems. The three major ones are:

Water stream slow down - just before the dam a layer of deposit has formed. This deposit is now 20 meters deep, increasing at a rate of growth of 1 meter per year. This mud is collecting the waste and toxic material flowing from the Danube Spring to the Iron Gate Dam. Water characteristics within the deposit vicinity are so badly changed with pollutants that river life has almost vanished.
The deposits also increase the water table level in plane area of Vojvodina. The higher water table not only changes life forms, but is also severely influencing the climate, living conditions and agricultural aspects of the area.
Down stream the Black Sea environment is also being seriously injured and this effect calls for immediate action.

This situation will not improve with time. Even more severe problems can be expected in the future. An international project related to the Danube as a largest European waterway and resource of sweet water on which many of countries rely is needed.

Project proposal

LEX proposes an international project formation that will consist of the following stages:

International round table on Danube pollution, with special emphasizes on the Iron Gate problem. Meeting should gather experts from the Danube region and from Europe in general, experts from various environmental backgrounds. The goal of the meeting would be to evaluate the problem and define the project in every aspect.
An international team should emerge from the results of the round table. This team would create a detailed program and project proposal taking into account demographic, geographic, continued need for energy generation, environmental, financial, etc.
Organizations and individuals from various European countries then should participate in the investigations and evaluations and role of each team should be assigned.
The result should be a program of remedial corrective measures and steps and pledges for the financial aspects of the program.

The Iron Gate Project should overcome local and national interest. It should be brought to an international level and as such to receive priority interest of all of the countries affected by the Danube River.

Project start up

Project should start with a low - budget meeting which will gather reputed individuals and organizations from all over Europe, held some time early autumn in Belgrade. This will be the initiative meeting to recognize and define the problem. Following will be a series of expert meetings (legal, biology, economy, environmental etc). As a result, phases of the project that requires experimental work (environmental aspects) and expert work (economy, energy, legal) should emerge. Next step will be budget formation to conduct the project itself. Project results must be concrete with the direct solution to minimize or overcome the existing problems related to the Iron Gate Dam on the Danube.

Budget

For the moment, only the first phase of the Project is proposed, i.e. meeting of high-ranking professionals from European countries dedicated to the Danube problem. Depending on the budget, some 15-20 people should be gathered in Belgrade for two days of talks. The budget assumes travel and hotel cost, plus overhead cost for organizing the meeting itself. The main goal of this summit is to define the project itself.

As a second step, with an elaborated and defined project, an approach to governments of European countries and EC should be made to ensure necessary pledges of funds for project realization.

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