UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME PROGRAMUL NATIUNILOR UNITE PENTRU DEZVOLTARE

UNDP Project "Coordination of Environment Emergency Measures in Romania" after the Accidental Spills www.undp.ro

• 3rd Report (3 May 2000)
• 4th Report (6 June 2000)
  
  3rd Report (3 May 2000)
  
  In late March 2000, UNDP through its country office in Romania started a new project supporting national and international efforts to reduce environmental pollution from mining and other industry hot spots in NW Romania. In co-operation with Romanian authorities, the UNDP project identified priorities for international assistance:
  + Risk Assessments
  + Environment impact assessments
  + Capacity building (equipment, training, networking with donors)
  Project progress and important news are regularly circulated to various stakeholders to secure information exchange.
  Apart from a visit to the accidental spill sites in the Maramures region in Northern Romania (see 1st Project Report from 5 April), UNDP project consultant Alexander Zinke and programme officer Maria Sandor had several meetings in Bucharest, Budapest and Vienna. As a first direct aid, UNDP agreed on 13 April with the Ministry for Environment the supply of monitoring equipment for local water authorities in Cluj, Baia Mare and Satu Mare in an amount of US$ 20,000. The related tendering procedure soon be completed.
  
  1. Risk assessments for the Maramures region and beyond
  

  Novat dam spill: view from the dam downstream on 1 April 2000

  First Results from Missions of Austrian and US-EPA Mining Experts to Maramures Region
  WWF published on 3 May the first results of a short-term expert mission. Prof.Dr.Ing.Karl Lorber from the mining university in Leoben/A, Dipl.Ing. Erhart-Schippek - resource management consultant from Graz/A, Dr. Driga, Institute of Geography - RO Academy from Bucharest visited on 17 and 18 April the Novat and Colbu tailing ponds in Baia Borsa and the Bozanta-Aurul pond in Baia Mare (www.panda.org/crisis/). This team met with an expert team from US-AID/US-EPA (four mining and hazardous waste experts visiting Baia Mare and Baia Borsa from 14 to 18 April). The teams found that the

  After Novat tailing dam failure (10 March 2000): erosion due to the spill within the deposit (1 April 2000)

  pollution problems cannot be restricted to Aurul and Novat ponds but exist in many more pollution sources in the region. Detail mission reports are expected in a few days.
  
  Some of the WWF expert findings are: The entire Maramures region includes dozens of leaking mining waste deposits, both old and recent ones. They are not (well) protected against the release of heavy metals (the oxidation of pyrit results in very acid conditions dissolving heavy metals) which pollute surface and groundwaters. There is an urgent need to both cover andstabilise these deposits against wind and water erosion, and to catch & clean polluted waters.
  The repairing works at the Novat dam are still under way and will need a few more weeks.

  Novat tailing dam spill: polluted Novat creek downstream of the dam

  There is a discharge of some 0.2 m?/sec of polluted waters from the pond which is released into Novat creek. The repairing of the 3rd (auxiliary) dam and pump system, designed to pre-treat tailing waters, is urgently needed. This dam should retain polluted waters to become re-pumped into the pond (closedsystem was the environment prescription). In addition, large volumes of tailing deposits from the accident in March are prone to be spilled into the creek: These still need to be recovered resp. secured from further erosion. An emergency overflow for floodwaters should be built to prevent a new dam failure.
  The Colbu I dam is the presently operated alternative tailing pond for Novat (action is not permitted to REMIN company by the environment authorities). Colbu I has only an emergency pump system for flood waters but no overflow. The upstream located Colbu II pond has an emergency overflow (into Colbu I) but receives undesired water from two mountain creeks (erosion problems!). Thus, also the Colbu system is risky and urgentlyneeds to be upgraded.
  The Aurul pond near Baia Mare is still under repairing, the re-processing of tailings is still stopped. WWF experts recommend the building of a treatment pond for the emergency discharge of its waters (containing high loads of cyanide).
  
  

  After the failure of the Novat tailing dam: spill area in Novat creek downstream the 3rd (safety) dam

  The findings of the US-EPA team will soon be made available on a web site.
  
  Meeting to Prepare Harmonised Emergency Response Plans in Cluj 25-26 May
  Following the trilateral agreement from 15 March in Debrecen (H) and the Declaration signed by the environment ministers of Romania, Hungary, Ukraine and Slovakia on 3 April in Budapest, an international expert meeting is under preparation. It will start with a presentation by German experts on the experience with preparing emergency response plans for the river Elbe (International Commission for the River Elbe ICRE) and then discuss the preparation of respective inventories and their monitoring by Romania, Ukraine, Hungary and Slovakia.
  
  Romanian Risk Assessment available as colour map
  A risk assessment documentation produced in 1998-1999 by APELE ROMANE in Cluj (Romanian Water Management Agency, 1999) for the entire Somes-Tisa region with priority ranking of 38 hot spots and 11 tailing ponds has been used by UNDP to produce a colour A3 map "Preliminary Risk Assessment of Water Pollution Sources in NW Romania (Somes and Upper Tisa Region". It illustrates the status of environmental information available in Romania and the problem regions to be focused at in the coming years. The map is being distributed by UNDP mostly via e-mail. If YOU cannot produce a A3 print out please contact the UNDP office (Tatiana.Stoian@undp.ro) to send you a copy!
  
  To read and zoom into the following .pdf-file you need the AcrobatReader:
  
  
  2. Environmental Impact Assessment for the Somes-Tisa region in Romania and for the Tisa downstream in Ukraine/Hungary/Yugoslavia.
  UNEP/OCHA Report Released on the Baia Mare Cyanide Spill
  On 19 April, the long-waited comprehensive report assessing the accident at the Aurul pond on 30 January and its impact in Hungary and Romania was published. It explains that the accident was probably caused by a combination of inherent design deficiencies in the industrial process, inadequate operating conditions and bad weather. The report calls for a risk-benefit assessment of the Aurul operations and for the entire system of remining old tailings. The report found only

  Aurul ore reprocessing plant in Baia Mare

  minimal immediate health risks but chronic health impacts due to the long history of mining and metal processing in the area. In its recommendations, the report suggests the revision of contingency plans for better warning and emergency response, and the improving of awareness-raising and information to local people. The report confirms killing of fish and phyto- and zooplankton but could not verify the total impact and recovery.
  
  The entire report can be downloaded in pdf format at the following web sites:
  http://www.unep.ch/roe/baiamare.htm and http://www.reliefweb.int/ocha_ol/index.html
  
  UNDP supports other efforts to identify the overall needs for environment impact assessments and to put together competent international teams which, again, include available local expert competence and capacities. As the spring period already started, there is a clear need to very soon begin with scientific work in the affected areas in the entire Tisa catchment.
  UNDP recently received a comprehensive environment monitoring proposal of an international team (universities of Würzburg and Hohenheim, Cluj and Debrecen, the IAD, WWF, BAG, BGR and CVM) for the Tisa catchment (RO, UA, H).
  
  3. Capacity Building in Romania
  3.1. Equipment: In agreement with the ministry for environment, the water management authority Apele Romane identified priority equipment for $20-40,000. UNDP has contacted international equipment suppliers. It is planned to deliver the equipment in May.
  Further equipment needs are presently being identified and a respective ?urgent wish list? is under preparation.
  
  3.2. Training: Various local authorities and experts expressed wishes to become better trained. Within its project, UNDP wants to finance two workshops:
  29 May - 2 June in Baia Mare: "Management and Prevention of Accidental Water Pollution in the Somes-Tisa Region"; for ca. 50 participants from government, agencies, industry, local authorities and NGOs.
  The workshop is planned to include presentations of international experts on accidental spill management and prevention both by western industries and governmental agencies. Participants will become invited to develop better local strategies for pollution reduction and accident prevention.
  Similar workshops are needed also in other river basin throughout Romania. It is hoped that other sponsors can be identified in the coming months.
  
  Summer 2000 "Disaster Management in Romania - Strengthening the coordination within the country and with UN agencies" (details to be developed)
  
  3.3. Networking
  UNDP supports the government and local agencies in preparing project proposals and acquiring international and bilateral funds. A special working group at the ministry for environment ("Urgent Needs for Accident Monitoring and Prevention") has been established. This also refers to mid-sized projects (communication equipment, cars for field inspection and mobile monitoring) and large investments (installation of a alarm warning system in the Somes-Tisa area, construction of the Runcu drinking water reservoir near Baia Mare). Information is available both from the Ministry and UNDP.
  
  UNDP wants to realise its project through regular networking with potential donors e.g. European Commission, World Bank, US-AID, embassies (bilateral assistance), WWF, etc. On 26 April, a meeting was held with the World Bank office in Bucharest. On 28 April, an information-exchange meeting was held with Philip Weller, WWF & member of the Baia Mare Task Force.
  
  UNDP started to also assess assistance needs in Hungary. On 17 April, a meeting was held with government commissioner Gönczy and at Australian embassy in Budapest (Mrs Gurd).
  
  EEHC Extraordinary meeting in Vienna
  The "European Commission for Environment and Health" called for an extra-ordinary session to review the accidental pollution in the Danube River, to take cognisance of the actions taken to date (13-14 April 2000) and to assess the need to consolidate these and similar experiences into guidance for preventing accidental spills and their consequences for public health. The EEHC endorsed a "Pilot Project on rapid environmental health risk assessment in secondary rivers of the Lower Danube Basin" proposed by the Italian Government and WHO. A follow-up technical meeting is planned for 17 May in Szentendre/H.
  The Romanian UNDP initiatives within the Project "Coordination of Environmental Emergency Measures" were presented by the UNDP programme officer Maria Sandor. Coordination between the two projects was initiated and interest for further cooperation with UNDP Romania was expressed by various participants.
  
  UNDP contacts: ph: +40-1-211 8855; e-mail: maria.sandor@undp.org; zinke@undp.ro
  
  
  
  
  
  .
  4th Report (6 June 2000)
  
  In late March 2000, UNDP started a new project supporting national and international efforts to reduce environmental pollution from mining and other industry hot spots in NW Romania. In co-operation with Romanian authorities, the UNDP project identified priorities for international assistance:
  + Risk Assessments
  + Environment impact assessments
  + Capacity building (equipment, training, networking with donors)
  Project progress and important news are regularly circulated to various stakeholders to secure information exchange.
  Apart from a visit to the accidental spill sites in the Maramures region in Northern Romania (see 1st Report from 5 April), UNDP project consultant Alexander Zinke and programme officer Maria Sandor hold several stakeholder meetings in Bucharest, Budapest and Vienna, and facilitated a WWF mission of mining experts (see reports no. 2 & 3). As a first direct aid, UNDP agreed on 13 April with the Ministry for Environment the supply of monitoring equipment for local water authorities in Cluj, Baia Mare and Satu Mare, and the organisation of a training workshop in Baia Mare. Both actions were recently completed, thus successfully ending the first phase of the UNDP project.
  
  Objectives of the UNDP project
  
  1) To provide a coordinated information service to major national and international parties interested in the water pollution issue;
  2) To identify priority action (environmental monitoring, risk and damage assessment, and pollution prevention);
  3) To promote a system to facilitate financing of priority projects between requesting institution and donor
  4) To select and transfer priority equipment for the Somes-Tisa region.
  
  
  Progress and Interim Results
  Ad 1) This focused on regular information to various stakeholders (especially e-mail reports), contacting and networking. Main outputs are, as of today, 4 information reports and a colour A3 map on a preliminary pollution risk assessment (source: Apele Romane; indicating 38 ranked priority hot spots and 11 risky tailing deposits); both were internationally distributed.
  
  Another major action was a Training Workshop "Management and Prevention of Water Pollution Incidents in the Somes-Tisa Region" from 29 May to 2 June. Altogether 76(!) participants came (more than were invited), representing the

  Sasar river west of Baia Mare: cross-cutting a waste deposit

  ministries of environment, foreign affairs, industry and health; local governments; the Civil Protection Command; local monitoring agencies on environment, health and water from 5 counties; industry (4 from mining, others from metallurgy, pharmaceutics, paper, pig farm), 4 water treatment companies, 3 NGOs, 2 universities and 10 international experts (4 from EUROMINES, 2 from Degussa-Huels industrial chemicals, 2 from Italian Ministry for Environment, from the Intl. Commission for the Danube River Basin and from UNDP-Emergency Response Division).
  
  The workshop included :
  + 32(!) presentations on causes of pollution, effects on environment and health, various local cases studies (including Aurul and Novat) and international accidents (Aznalcollar and hurricane Midge), proposals on local possibilities for improvement and presentation of the international experience on pollution and risk management.
  + 2 study visits at PHOENIX metallurgical and AURUL ore re-processing plants.
  + Four working groups (Somes river region, Baia Mare region, Crasna river region and Upper Tisa-Viseu river region) produced local joint strategies (11 pages indicating: where to do what kind of pollution/risk reduction measure by what institutions and in what time frame).
  
  Some key findings: Since 1994, 52 pollution accidents were recorded in this region, including 3 disasters (2 in 2000). While cyanide may be most effective for leaching gold & silver, international incident preparedness standards are very high and serious (see recent UNEP workshop in Paris) but not met in Romania; the antidot hypochloride (typical for Somes-Tisa industries) was considered to worsen toxic impacts, and hydrogenperoxide being a much better counter-agent.
  Local people are usually not aware of the environmental and health pollution hazards, they are not prepared for accidents. The technologies applied in industry are outdated and the sewage facilities overloaded, the operators are often badly trained and sometimes ignore emission limits for receiving waters.
  
  However, local industries as well as other stakeholders present at the workshop expressed their strong willingness to tackle the pollution problems. But, they lack specific (international) technical consulting how to best (= cost-effective) reduce the risks and the pollution loads. More detailed workshop results will be presented later in a UNDP booklet.
  
  WWF (Prof. Lorber) and US-EPA mining expert reports for Maramures
  The two reports already announced before will be available in their final version in the nearest future. They assess the status of the tailing deposits in Baia Borsa and Baia Mare (Aurul), both are illustrated with colour pictures and provide recent expert impressions about the local situation. To receive a copy, please contact:
  Nina Fite at the US embassy FiteNM@state.gov and Philip.Weller@wwf.at
  
  
  Ad 2) The main need in North-Western Romania is to complement and upgrade existing environmental risk assessments (inventories, monitoring, prevention measures, warning systems). The new inventory for RO, H, UA & SK (agreed at the expert meeting in Cluj on 23 May) will be compiled by the ICPDR secretariat at the end of June.
  
  A local site assessment has to identify the most urgent action at risky tailing deposits and industries. While the Aurul dam seems to be ok, the Novat and Colbu dams - probably with a few (10?) other deposits (active or old) - are not considered safe and are heavily leaking into surface and groundwaters. Therefore, they pose a chronicle, non-quantified transboundary pollution problem which is yet not being tackled!
  
  Ad 3) UNDP received various project proposals varying from $ 10,000 (small monitoring equipment) to EURO 60 million (new drinking water reservoir). Interested donors should contact Maria Sandor or Alexander Zinke. Even small support can bring large benefits (see below!).
  
  Ad 4). On 26 May, UNDP Romania handed over various water quality monitoring equipment to the Romanian Ministry for Waters, Forests and Environmental Protection. The equipment will serve for better measuring oxygen, salts, arsenic, cyanides and heavy metals and will be installed in mid June at the local offices of the Romanian Water Authority Apele Romane in Cluj-Napoca, Baia Mare and Satu Mare.
  The equipment, requested as an urgent need, has a market price of up to US$ 40,000. However, UNDP managed to find a supplier, namely the company CMS in Augsburg, Germany, offering this equipment for a special price of only US$ 20,000. CMS stated in the press conference on 26 May to be ready to supply further equipment at the same discount!
  

  Minibus donated on 2 June 2000 by UNDP Romania to the Environment Protection Agency in Baia Mare

  
  In addition, on 4 June on occasion of the Ministerial Conference on Lower Danube Basin Cooperation in Bukarest, UNDP handed over a used Toyota minivan to the Environment Protection Agency in Baia Mare. The car will much improve the EPA capacities to survey the polluters in the Maramures county. UNDP purchased the car for another project which ended recently and is not of urgent use for UNDP anymore.
  
  
  Needs for Short-term Action
  
  1. Detail Risk Study for the Mining Industry in the Maramures region
  The following are conclusions from local fact-finding missions of UNDP, WWF (Prof. Lorber, Austria) and US-EPA in April 2000 (see respective reports).
  

  Spill site downstream of the Novat valley tailing dam on 1 April 2000: destroyed forest railway line

  The range of old and active tailing and mine deposits in the Maramures region is at some 100, all of which are leaking heavy metals. The number of problematic deposits is probably of some 10-15.
  Problems are (1) uncontrolled leakage of high loads of heavy metals, (2) various instability aspects (erosion) of tailing deposits, (3) the discharge of polluted mine waters and (4) the discharge of waste waters from ore-processing plants.
  The study should identify short-term action to reduce the discharge and to improve dam stabi-lity. Step 2 would be the financing and implementation of identified emergency measures.
  
  2. Other polluting industries in North-Western Romania
  All major industrial hot spots with serious chronicle pollution in the Somes-Tisa region are already identified (see UNDP map). These metallurgical, chemical, agricultural and municipal hot spots pose a pollution problem similar to that of the mining industry. Their recent ranking by Apele Romane is an excellent starting point for new activities. The UNDP workshop showed that these companies are open for improvement but hardly able to solve the problems alone.
  A specific study should provide an overview of which companies need what kind of support (managerial, technical, financial, etc.) to get what kind of pollution reduction benefit. Again, this could result in a priority list of measures and investments with the focus on "small action-big benefit".
  
  3. Environment Impact Assessment of Pollution Spills
  As the two major accidents in early 2000 are only the last of a series of small and big accidents over the last decades , it is important to answer to the following questions:
  - What was really the size of damages of the last two spills (in Romania and Ukraine, apart from Hungary)?
  - What was the status of ecosystems prior to 2000? (level of degradation and contamination)
  - How do various ecosystem parts suffer from or how are they "adapted" to spills (e.g.
  plankton, benthos, fish, mammals)
  - What are the most affected river stretches, especially in terms of heavy metal transport?
  - Where and how much are agricultural areas contaminated?
  The quantification of such questions is essential for any conclusion assessing the latest accidents and for prioritising the pending mitigation measures (further damage prevention, cleaning up, restoration).
  
  In addition to experts/institutes already working on the spill assessment, there are other local (RO, H) specialists who, with relatively little funds, are ready to do such short-term assessments. Other international experts from Germany, Austria etc. are also available and suggest to use e.g. satellite monitoring. Respective proposals are available.
  
  UNDP contacts:
  ph: +40-1-211 8855: Maria Sandor e-mail: maria.sandor@undp.org;
  Alexander Zinke: zinke@undp.ro or zinke.enviro@vienna.at