Balkan Vital Graphics

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Environmental protection is one of the areas where the Balkan countries still face a big challenge to catch up with their western neighbours. After the 1990s conflicts and the breakup of Yugoslavia, six new Balkan states emerged. Apart from integrating environmental concerns into the new policies, a major challenge is environmental management across new borders. What used to be six international river basins in the Balkans have now evolved into 13 internationally shared river basins and four transboundary lake basins.

B A L A N VITAL GRAPHICS ENVIRONMENT WITHOUT BORDERS K

www.envsec.org

B A L K A N VITAL GRAPHICS ENVIRONMENT WITHOUT BORDERS

This publication was initiated by the Environment and Security Initiative (ENVSEC), a partnership between six organizations listed below.

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), as the world’s leading inter- governmental environmental organisation, is the authoritative source of knowledge on the current state of, and trends shaping the global environment. The mission of UNEP is to provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing, and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the UN’s Global Develop- ment Network, advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, expe- rience and resources to help people build a better life. It operates in 166 countries, working with them on responses to global and national development challenges. As they develop local capacity, the countries draw on the UNDP people and its wide range of partners. The UNDP network links and co-ordinates global and national efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) strives to foster sustainable economic growth among its 56 member countries. To that end, UNECE provides a forum for communication among States; brokers international legal instru- ments addressing trade, transport and the environment; and supplies statistics and analysis. The broad aim of UNECE’s environment activities is to safeguard the envi- ronment and human health, and to promote sustainable development in its member countries in line with Agenda 21. With 56 participating States, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is a pre-eminent instrument for early warning, conflict prevention, conflict man- agement and post conflict rehabilitation in continental Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia and North America. Since its beginnings in 1973 the OSCE has taken a comprehensive view of security, including through the protection and promotion of human rights and fun- damental freedoms, economic and environmental cooperation, and political dialogue. The Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Eastern Europe (REC) is a non- partisan, non-advocacy, not-for-profit international organization with a mission to assist in solving environmental problems in Central and Eastern Europe. The center fulfils this mission by promoting cooperation among non- governmental organizations, govern- ments, businesses and other environmental stakeholders, and by supporting the free exchange of information and public participation in environmental decision-making. The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) embodies the transatlantic link that binds Europe and North America in a unique defence and security alliance. In response to recent changes in the overall security environment, NATO took on new fundamental tasks. These include addressing both instability caused by regional and ethnic conflicts within Europe and threats emanating from beyond the Euro-Atlantic area. NATO’s “Sci- ence for Peace and Security” programme brings scientists together to work jointly on new issues and to contribute to security, stability and solidarity among nations.

Editorial team Ieva Rucevska Otto Simonett

Cartography Philippe Rekacewicz Stephane Kluser Matthias Beilstein Ieva Rucevska Cecile Marin Otto Simonett

Special thanks for collaboration to Harald Egerer (UNEP Vienna office) Jelena Beronja (UNEP Vienna office) Bo Libert (UNECE) Francesca Bernadini (UNECE) Franca Schwarz (German Environment Ministry) Claudia Heberlein (UNEP/GRID-Arendal) Mukundi Mutasa (UNEP/GRID-Arendal)

B A L K A N VITAL GRAPHICS

Christina Stuhlberger Jasmina Bogdanovic

The views expressed in this book are those of the au- thors and do not necessarily reflect views of neither UNEP/GRID-Arendal nor ENVSEC partner organiza- tions or their member-countries. The designations employed and the presentation of material in this book do not imply the expression of any opinion on the part of the organizations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area of its authority, or delinea- tion of its frontiers and boundaries. For the purpose of this publication the name Kosovo has been used to refer to the territory under the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo, es- tablished in 1999 by the UN Security Council resolution 1244; and the name Macedonia has been used to refer to the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Published by UNEP/GRID-Arendal Copyright © 2007, UNEP/GRID-Arendal ISBN: 978-82-7701-046-5 Printed by AVANGARDA, 11080 Zemun, Srbija.

English translation and editing Harry Foster

Photography Vlado Alonso

Contents contributors Slavko Bogdanovic, Professor of environmental law, Serbia Jean-Arnault Derens, journalist, France Robert Hargreaves, Balkan Peace Park Project, United Kingdom Lorik Haxhiu, Ministry of Energy and Mining, Kosovo Marlene Heeb, Research Institute of Organic Agriculture, Switzerland Zbigniew Niewiadomski, Bieszczardy National Park, Poland Nikola Nikolov, Professor, University of Skopje, Macedonia Nelly Papazova, the Regional Environmental Center, Hungary Philip Peck, Assistant Professor, ENVSEC mining expert, Lund University, Sweden Edit Pop, WWF Baia Mare, Romania Scott Sinclair, the World Bank, United States Fethi Silajdzic, Bosna-S Oil Services Company, Bosnia and Herzegovina Michael Stanley, the World Bank, United States Dragi Pop Stojanov, Brajcino Society for Sustainable Development, Macedonia Skender Syla, WHO, Kosovo

UNEP promotes environmentally sound practices globally and in its own activities. This

report is printed on 100% recycled paper, using vegetable-based inks and other eco- friendly practices. Our distribution policy aims to reduce UNEP’s carbon footprint.

Bekele Tamenu, WTO, Switzerland Martin Woker, journalist, Croatia Antonia Young, Balkan Peace Park Project, United Kingdom

BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

Foreword by Otto Simonett

Contents

GREY

BROWN

BLUE

GREEN

One of the more recent James Bond movies, Casino Royale, prominently featured somewhere called Monte negro, thus putting a little known place – or country – on the world map, at least for those who saw the film. In the film, what purported to be Montenegro did not look quite like the real thing. Nor did the story, the ac- tion, nor indeed anything else in the movie particularly appeal to me personally (unlike the early Bond movies of my childhood). All in all I do not recall anything oth- er than a cliché now shared with many of the millions who also saw the film: Montenegro is a place of natural beauty and a paradise for money launderers, with lots of long legged ladies. Consequently talk of the Balkans, the environment and security may sound like yet another indigestible cock- tail of pollution, conflict and poverty, with maybe some sex and crime too. However, we have also added vital graphics, to give the book more of a superstructure or spin, in short the ambition to communicate.

region, a part of the world that faces many problems related to its environment and security, a place where “the dark side” often overshadows opportunities based on rich, diverse natural and human assets, the “bright side”. With this publication, the consortium of international organizations behind the ENVSEC initiative would like to paint a picture using more colours than just black and white, taking intermediate hues to highlight the re- gion’s environmental and security issues: gray, for the political background, always relevant to such a harm- less topic as the environment; blue, for water, as in the Blue Danube, disregarding national borders and offer- ing enormous potential for cooperation; brown, with an industrial legacy of brown clouds and rusty water, yet endowed with a certain charm and considerable po- tential for future development; lastly green, symbolic of nature itself, but also associated with conservation, production, cooperation and consumption. Unfortunately our booklet will probably have far fewer readers than Casino Royale had viewers, but to those who do take a look at it, we say: Enjoy!

MINING 24

NATURE 58

BACKGROUND

WATER

We aim to communicate nothing less than the environ- ment of this highly complex, fascinating and attractive

BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

“What would be … ”

“Long before appointed time the four ‘recognized notables’ met on the deserted square and walked with slow steps to the kapia … They sat on the kapia as they had once done when they were young and carefree and, like the rest of the young people, wasted their time there. Only now they all advanced in years. Pop Nikola and Mula Ibrahim were old, and the schoolmaster and the rabbi in the prime of life. They were all in their best clothes, filled with anxiety both for themselves and their flocks. They looked at one an- other closely and long in the fierce summer sun, and each seemed to the others grown old for his years and worn out. Each of them remembered the others as they had been in youth or childhood, when they had grown up on this bridge, each in his own generation, green wood of which no one could tell what would be. They smoked and talked of one thing while turning another over in their minds, glancing every moment towards Okoliste whence the commandant upon whom everything depend- ed was to come and who could bring them, their people and the whole town, either good or evil, either peace or fresh dangers.”

“Много пре одређеног времена четворица ‘законаша’ нашли су се на опустелој пијаци и спорим корацима запутили на капију … Тако су седели на софи као некад кад су били млади и безбрижни и као и остала младеж кратили време на капији. Само што су сада били сви већ у годинама. Поп Никола и Мула Ибрахим стари, а мудерис и рабин зрели људи, празнички одевени и безбрижни за себе и сваки за своје. Гледали су се на оштром летњем сунцу, онако на дугу времену и изблиза, и долазили су један другом престарели за своје године и сувише истрошени. И сваки се сећао другог какав је био у младости или у детињству, кад су расли поред овог моста, сваки са својим нараштајем, зелено дрво од којег се још не зна шта ће бити. Пушили су, разговарали једно а у мислима претурали друго, погледајући сваки час на Околишта, одакле треба да се јави командант од кога зависи сада све и од кога може доћи и за њихов свет и целу касабу и добро и зло и смирење и нове опасности.”

Excerpt from The Bridge on the Drina (Serbo-Croat: На Дрини Ћупријa or Na Drini Cuprija ), a novel by the Yugo slav writer Ivo Andric, winner of the Nobel Prize in 1961. The book describes relations between Orthodox Christian Serbs and Muslims in the town of Višegrad in east Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Ottoman occupation. The story spans about four centuries and is, in some sense, a collection of short stories. What unites the book and becomes in a sense the main “character” is the bridge over the Drina River in Višegrad.

BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

GREY

BACKGROUND

BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

BACKGROUND

MINING

WATER

NATURE

The west Balkans and the Black Sea region are characterized by numer- ous common risks and challenges, including fragile statehood, a shared history of violent conflict, unconsolidated democratization and economic underdevelopment. Given the crucial geopolitical position of both regions as (a) direct neighbours to the European Union (EU), North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), and Russia, (b) a bridge to the Middle East and Central Asia, and (c) an increasingly important energy transport route, instability in either region can have significant ramifications for domestic, regional, and international security. (Ref: Berteismann Group for Policy Research)

R U S S I A

Wien

Budapest

A U S T R I A - H U N G A R Y

Zagreb

Occupied by Austria-Hungary

R O M A N I A

Beograd

Bucureşti

Sarajevo

S E R B I A

B U L G A R I A

Sofiya

MONTENEGRO

Sofiya

O T T O M A N E M P I R E

I T A L Y

İstanbul

ALBANIA

O T T O M A N

1913 After Balkan Wars

1878 Congress of Berlin

G R E E C E

E M P I R E

POLAND

CZECHOSLOVAKIA

SOVIET UNION

S O V I E T U N I O N

Wien

AUSTRIA

Budapest

H U N G A R Y

R O M A N I A

Zagreb

R O M A N I A

Bucureşti

Beograd

Y U G O S L A V I A

Sarajevo

B U L G A R I A

Sofiya

I T A L Y

İstanbul

ALBANIA

People and identity The wars in former-Yugoslavia speeded up the proc- ess of ethnic homogenization underway in the west Balkans since modern states started to take form in the 19th century. In Croatia, for instance, the propor- tion of Serbs in the overall population has dropped from 12 per cent to just 4 per cent in 10 years. Bosnia and Herzegovina now consists of two political enti- ties, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republic of Srpska, and Distric Brcko hosting three main ethnic groups. The same is true of Kosovo, where the Serbs have lived in enclaves since 1999. A similar trend is at work in Macedonia, discreetly separating communities. It is even apparent in Skopje where segregation between Macedonian and Albanian neighbourhoods is growing.

T U R K E Y

1923 Treaty of Lausanne

1945 After World War II

G R E E C E

U K R A I N E

SLOVAKIA

Wien

AUSTRIA

Budapest

MOLDOVA

H U N G A R Y

SLOVENIA

R O M A N I A

Zagreb

C R O A T I A

Bucureşti

BOSNIA- HERZEGOVINA

Beograd

SERBIA

Sarajevo

B U L G A R I A

YUGOSLAVIA B U L G A R I A

MONTENEGRO

Sofiya

MACEDONIA

I T A L Y

İstanbul

ALBANIA

T U R K E Y

1995 Dayton Agreement

G R E E C E

2006

BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

BACKGROUND

MINING

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NATURE

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The wars gave rise to significant movements of pop- ulation, some temporary, others permanent. It has proved difficult for refugees and displaced persons to return to their former homes. In Bosnia and Herze-

govina, the process is often illusory. Returnees hurry to sell recovered property, particularly when it is lo- cated in areas in which the ethnic community to which they belong is now in the minority.

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BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

BACKGROUND

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NATURE

Population density

Pécs

Subotica

ZAGREB

Timisoara

Vojvodina

CROATIA

Sisak

Osijek

Novi Sad

Zrenjanin

ROMANIA

Republic of Srpska

BELGRADE

Bihac

Brcko

Banja Luka

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

Zadar

SERBIA

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina SARAJEVO

Sibenik

BULGARIA

Kraljevo

Split

Nis

Mostar

Fighting may have ended but migration continues. De- spite increasingly strict EU policies on immigration, the “western dream” still exerts a powerful force of attrac- tion on the people of the Balkans. This is particularly noticeable in Kosovo where half the population is un- der 20 and unemployment affects 60 per cent of peo- ple of working age. The brain drain, primarily among young graduates, is compromising the future of coun- tries such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Albania. In recent years there has been an increase in the number of migrants being forcibly repatriated, under readmis- sion agreements signed by all the west Balkan coun- tries with the EU. In the meantime, the rural exodus is continuing all over the region, particularly in Albania where people are deserting mountain areas and the population of Tirana has risen from 200 000 at the end of the com- munist era to almost a million. The newcomers cram into the city outskirts lacking any proper infrastructure. A similar pattern may be seen in Belgrade, Sarajevo and Skopje.

MONTENEGRO

SOFIA

��

Pristina

Niksic

Pec

A D R

� ��

PODGORICA

Kosovo

I A T

I C

Shkodër

S E A

SKOPJE

ITALY

MACEDONIA

0 - 2 2 - 10 10 - 50 50 - 200 200 - 800 800 - 3 000 no data Inhabitants per km 2

Durrës

International boundary Autonomous boundary Inter-entity boundary line

TIRANA

Ohrid

Bitola

Elbasan

Thessaloniki

Fier

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ALBANIA

GREECE

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The boundaries and names shown and the designations used on this map do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the United Nations. Map by UNEP/DEWA/GRID-Europe. Sources: ORNL Landscan 2002; ESRI Data & Maps 2003; UN Cartographic Section.

Lambert Azimuthal Equal-Area Projection

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Kilometres

BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

BACKGROUND

MINING

WATER

NATURE

Green politics In 1992, Montenegro, at that time part of the Federal Re- public of Yugoslavia, adopted a new constitution which qualified it as an “ecological state”, the first to lay claim to this distinction. It has never had any practical effect. Much as in the other Balkan countries, environmental awareness is very low in Montenegro and public policy attaches only minor importance to the ecology. Unlike other countries in central and east Europe, envi- ronmental movements did not play a major role in pre- cipitating the downfall of communism, except perhaps in Slovenia. Throughout the 1990s, politics in the former Yugoslav republics limited itself to a standoff between nationalist and pro-democratic forces, leaving very little room for other issues. Today’s supposedly “green” parties are often little more than empty shells in the west Balkan region. Various politi- cal parties, particularly those with a regionalist agenda,

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nevertheless exploit environmental issues with varying degrees of enthusiasm and sincerity. This is for instance the case in the Vojvodina autonomous province, Serbia or in Istria, Croatia, where the Istrian Democratic Forum (Is- tarski Demokratski Forum, IDF), at the head of the regional government, is actively promoting sustainable tourism. But in recent years significant citizens’ movements have emerged, in particular in the Republic of Srpska and Montenegro, to counter plans to build dams for hy- dropower generation with potentially serious environ- mental consequences. Their efforts have been met with success and the dam projects on the Vrbas, in Bosnia, and the Tara, in Montenegro, have been shelved at least for the moment. A powerful movement is developing in Pancevo, an industrial centre near Belgrade regularly affected by serious air pollution. Serbia’s independent trade union, Nezavisnost, pays close attention to the impact of industrial pollution too.

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Fragile states All the states that emerged from the break-up of Yugoslavia are still fragile, except Slovenia, which joined the EU in 2004, and Croatia, which is well on the way towards European integration. Since the Dayton Peace Agreement (1995), Bosnia and Herze- govina has constituted a state, but split into two enti- ties: the Republic of Srpska and the Federation of Bos- nia and Herzegovina, itself divided into 10 cantons. In addition, there exists the district of Brcko which is a self-governing administrative unit. All attempts at re- form of this highly ineffective institutional framework have failed so far.

Energy and transportation Several transportation corridors singled out by the EU as development priorities pass through the Balkans, in par- ticular corridors Vc (Budapest-Ploce), VIII (Sofia-Skopje- Thessalonica-Durres) and X (linking Germany to Greece, via Croatia, Serbia and Macedonia). Most of these projects only exist on paper, apart from corridor X, which corresponds to a line of communication essential to Eu- ropean trade. It is served by a busy, good quality motor- way. The countries through which this route passes may use this transit function to leverage development.

Kosovo is theoretically a part of Serbia but has been under provisional United Nations administration since 1999. The decision on its final status could have seri- ous consequences for the region, with the risk of new disturbances in areas with Albanian minorities (in Mac- edonia, Montenegro and Serbia). Each government in the region has more or less re- stored law and order elsewhere. The “grey areas” of the 1990s have disappeared, particularly in Albania. However, corruption is still rife in government and pub- lic services (healthcare, education, etc.).

In contrast, some countries remain on the sidelines, notably Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Albania, though the latter has the advantage of its coastline. Some infrastructure projects, such as the motorway slated to connect Kosovo to Albania, obviously have a political significance. Trade in the region is still limited, due to customs formalities and poor infrastructure. The rail network, which is not very extensive, suffered during the various

BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

BACKGROUND

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WATER

NATURE

conflicts. The Danube was closed to navi- gation for a few years, due to NATO bomb- ing in 1999 which destroyed several bridges preventing river traffic. Today, all the bridges have been rebuilt and navigation has been reopened in the area.

FINLAND

Political and economic alliances Member and observer countries

SWEDEN

BALTICSEA

DENMARK

Vyborg

Helsinki

NORTH SEA

BALTICAND POLANDBYPASS: NORTHERNEUROPEAN GASPIPELINE ANDBALTICOILPIPELINE (BPS)-

of the GUAM: Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Moldavia (a pro-western organisation) of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) of the European Union

Primorsk

Tallinn

ESTONIA

Tomsk

LANDS NETHER-

Saint Petersburg

Rostock

Novossibirsk

Riga

RUSSIA

Greifswald

LATVIA

of the Union of Russia and Belarus

Perm

Jaroslavl

Tyumen

GERMANY

Gdansk

of both the SCO and the Union of Russia and Belarus

RUSSIA

LITHUANIA

Berlin

Omsk

Major oil and gas pipeline projects The oil and gas pipeline ‘war’ Major oil and gas fields

Vilnius

GASPIPELINE YAMALEUROPE

Moscow

Kazan

Minsk

Niznij- Novgorod

Warsaw

Prague

Ufa

Existing or under construction and/or renovation

POLAND

BELARUS

Envisaged

Supported by

CZECH REP. .

DRUJBA EXPANSION

Astana

SWITZ.

Samara

China Russia the United States the European Union Iran

Vienna Bratislava

AUSTRIA

Karaganda

Brody

Orenburg

SLOVAKIA

Kiev

Saratov

Budapest

Atassu

Druzh ba

Trieste

Ex-USSR pipeline network Other very important pipelines

SLOVENIA

Alexandrov Gaj

OILPIPELINE ADRIA REVERSAL

HUNGARY

Omisalj

UKRAINE

LAKE BALKHA SH

KAZAKHSTAN

Alashanku

Chisinau MOLDOVA

KAZAKHSTAN-CHINA OILPIPELINE

Chossing a route: geostrategic ‘bypass’ policies

Kuvandyk

CROATIA

GASPIPELINE NABUCCO

RUSSIA

Volgograd

Territory which is largely not under state control and where the security of oil and gas pipelines cannot be guaranteed Territory that players in the Great Game say should be avoided when planning the transport of oil and gas from the point of extraction to the main markets (US, Europe, China and Japan) • The US and European Union are seeking at all costs to establish supply lines across the southern Caucasus, the Black Sea, and Turkey, thus avoiding Russian and Iranian territory (although the Europeans are consider- ing a gas pipeline across the north of Iran). • Russia is trying to control the oil and gas routes across transit countries (Georgia, Ukraine, Belarus, Hungary and Poland). On 12 May 2007 it signed an agreement with Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan to renovate the CAC-4 gas pipeline, thus spoiling competing western plans. It has also just commissioned a gas pipeline allowing it to bypass Chechnya. Finally, Russia could neutralise the Ukraine, Poland and the Baltic states as transit countries by joining in the construction of gas and oil pipelines across the Baltic sea (with direct access to the German market) and from Burgas to Alexandroupoli (avoiding, for historical and ecological reasons, the Bosporus). • Azerbaijan insists on bypassing its neighbour Armenia, with which it is still in conflict.

BOSNIA and HERZEGOVINA

Karakoya Kol

Rostov

Odessa

Aterau

ITALY

Alma-Ata

SERBIA Belgrade

Kherson

Iujny

ROMANIA

TENGIZ

CHINA

CASPIANPIPELINE CONSORTIUM-CPC

KASHA

GAN

TURKMENISTAN-CHINA GASPIPELINE

SEAOF AZOV

Bucharest

KCTS (OILPIPELINETO KURYKTHEN TANKERS)

MONTENEGRO Kosovo

Constanta

Crimea

Bishkek

Krasnodar

OIL

ARAL SEA

Sofia

KYRGYZSTAN

PIPELINE AMBO

BULGARIA

Novorossijsk

CHECHNYABYPASS

Tirana

Burgas

MACEDONIA

Bejneu

TANKERS

Tuapse

Vlorë

Aktau

BAP

Tashkent

ALBANIA

CENTRALASIA– CENTREGAS PIPELINE (CAC-4) WESTERNLEG EASTERNLEG

CASPIAN SEA

Bosphorus

Abkhazia

UZBEKISTAN

Kuryk

BLACKSEA

Chechnya

Alexandroupolis

GEORGIA

A number of oil pipelines are currently under study or construction in the Balkans: the US registered Albanian-Macedonian-Bulgarian Oil Corporation (AMBO) project will carry oil from the Caspian to the Mediterranean, via Bulgaria, Macedonia and Albania; the Adria Group project will channel Russian oil to the Omisalj terminal on the Croatian coast. The presence of President Putin, of Russia, at Southeast Europe’s first energy summit in Zagreb in June 2007, emphasised the re- gion’s strategic importance to his country. It should be borne in mind that many Balkan countries suffer a serious energy deficit, fur- ther aggravated by the closure of four out of six units of the nuclear power plant at Ko- zloduy, Bulgaria, by 2006.

Istanbul

GASPIPELINE BLUESTREAM

GREECE

Tbilisi

Supsa

KCTS

TANKERS

TCGP

TAJIKISTAN

Ankara

AEGEAN

OILPIPELINEBTC

Dushanbe

Erevan ARMENIA

Turkmenbashi

AZERBAIJAN

Athens

Bakou

Baku

TURKMENISTAN

Erzurum

GASPIPELINE BTE

TURKEY

Nakhitchevan (Azer.)

MEDITERRANEAN

Ashkhabad

GUNESHLI CHIRAG AZERI

TRANSCASPIAN CORRIDOR

Tabriz

Ceyhan

Kabul

Islamabad

Neka

Meshed

AFGHANISTAN

Herat

CYPRUS

Tehran

Sources:Kazinform;WorldPressReview;Pravda;RiaNovosti;Agence France-Presse (AFP);UnitedStatesDepartmentofEnergy (USDOE),Energy InformationAdministration (EIA);RadioFreeEurope -RadioLiberty (RFE-RL); AsianDevelopmentBank;Eurasianet; InterstateOilandGasTransport to Europe (Inogate);TransportCorridorEurope-Caucasus (Traceca),European Union,Tacisprogramme,2005;EnergyMapof theMiddleEastandCaspianSea Areas,PetroleumEconomist,London,2006; InternationalEnergyAgency (IEA); JeanRadvanyiandNicolasBeroushashvili, ‘Atlas’, Institutnationaldes langues etcivilisationsduCaucasusorientales (Inalco), tobepublishedat theendof 2007;SaltanatBerdikeevaandErinMark, ‘Russianenergypolitics’,Eurasia21, 2006;Nabucco,Energyministersconference ‘Securityofgas supplies inEurope’, Vienna, June2006

SYRIA

GASPIPELINETAPI

LEBANON

Baghdad

IRAN

New Delhi

PAKISTAN

ISRAEL

Isfahan

IRAQ

PALESTINE

INDIA

Kerman

JORDAN

SAUDI ARABIA

ÉGYPTE

LIBYE

Abadan

Shiraz

GASPIPELINE IPI

KUWAIT

NB:TheCaspianPipelineConsortium (CPC) is supportedbyRussiabuthasa numberofUS,OmaniandKazakh shareholders

MAP BY PHILIPPE REKACEWICZ, 2007

BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

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Vlado Alonso Tito & friends (Bor 2006)

Vlado Alonso Filoloski (Belgrade 2007)

BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

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WATER

NATURE

On the road to the EU In 2003, the European summit in Thessalonica reiterated its “unequivocal support to the European perspective of the Western Balkan countries” but did not specify a timeframe for membership. Slovenia joined the Union in 2004, fol- lowed by Romania and Bulgaria in 2007, making the west Balkans a sort of “land-locked” island in the EU. Two countries (Croatia and Macedonia) have enjoyed of- ficial candidate status since 2005, whereas all the others (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia and Albania) have engaged in the Stabilisation and Association proc- ess. These countries also benefit from specific European policies, in particular under the Stability Pact for South East Europe. Furthermore, the EU is taking on growing civil and military responsibilities in post-conflict management, pri- marily in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Serbia is in a particularly delicate position. For several years, the main obstacle to rapprochement was the lack of Ser- bian cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in the Hague. Serbia has since made progress in this respect but the next step on the road towards Europe demands settlement of the Kosovo question. The idea of making any further progress conditional on Serbia adopting a “cooperative” attitude on Kosovo has frequently been raised. Come what may, it seems that the status of the territory currently under UN administration must be settled before any further advances can be expected. This brings the question of whether the EU will one day allow Serbia and Kosovo to join as separate states. Similarly, Brussels con- siders it impossible to entertain closer ties with Bosnia and Herzegovina until it undertakes root-and-branch reform of the institutions inherited from the Dayton Peace Agreement. The present crisis in Europe’s own institutions rules out any idea of enlargement to include the Balkan countries in the immediate future. Yet this seems to be the only prospect capable of preventing further strife, particularly in the case of restless Macedonia.

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BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

25 BROWN

MINING

BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

BACKGROUND

MINING

WATER

NATURE

Southeast Europe, as we have seen, has a long history of mining base and precious metals, reaching back to the fifth century BC at least. In Serbia, for example, archaeological exploration of the Bor site suggests that copper mining started in prehistoric times. The Balkans was the first place on the European continent where human society developed intensively. But in its long history, from prehistoric times to the present day, mining has experi- enced several ups and downs.

Hazardous industrial site, water pollution and mining hot spots

Krsko (Slovenia)

Subotica

ZAGREB

odina ojv V

CROATIA

M AA

Novi Sad

of Srpska c epubli R

Brcko

Pancevo

Doboj

Sabac

BELGRADE

Ugljevik

Cu mine & mill

Lukavac

Zajaca

Pb-Zn mine & mill

Maglaj

Tuzla

Smederevo

Birac Zvornick

Kostolac

Majdanpek

Krupanj

Jajce

Lazarevac

Prahovo

Vares

Veliki Madjan

BOSNIA AND

Kolubara

Cerovo

Pb-Zn mine & mill

Zenica

Lignite mine & ash deposits

Veliki Krivelj Bor

Kakanj

OVINA HERZEG

Srebrenica

Kozloduy

SARAJEVO

Kragujevac

Federation of Bosnia and vina He rze o

Pb-Zn mine & mill

Cu mining, concentration, smelting, refinery, alloying, etc...

Cacak

Lucani

Konjic

SERBIA

Pb-Zn mine & mill

BULGARIA

Suplja

Pljevlja

Nis

Leposavic

Gacko

Mojkovac and Brskovo

Electrolytic Zn smelter & refinery

Zvecan

Balkan countries have struggled with the legacy of the break-up of former Yugoslavia and numerous armed conflicts. The region is highly fragmented and charac- terized by a complex economic and social situation that impacts in various ways on the management of mines and in some cases on the treatment of waste water. The environmental legacy associated with extraction in- dustries is all too familiar. Badly operated or abandoned mining sites have already caused severe pollution, some with impacts spilling across national boundaries: heavy metal spills from Baia Borsa tailings in Romania; the cyanide spill from Baia Mare in Romania; heavy metal spills from Sasa tailings in Macedonia; and various re- leases at Majdanpek and Veliki Majdan in Serbia, and Mojkovac in Montenegro. Watercourses are the main vector for transboundary pollution, whether it is ongoing and chronic, or infrequent, acute and accidental. Smelters near borders such as in Bor, Serbia, also con- tribute to air pollution, with serious consequences for human health to this day, and continuing risks for the

future. Environmental incidents related to the mining in- dustry also fuel political tension at a time when peace and cooperation head the agenda. The economic effects of irresponsible mining practices reach out to food exports and tourism, which suffer from the powerful media exposure of accidents and ongoing pollution activities. All these chronic problems – on top of their direct environmental impact – contrib- ute to a negative atmosphere for economic investment essential to the region’s sustainable development. However, southeast Europe is still rich in mineral re- sources and sustainable mining cannot be neglected as an option to progress economic development. There- fore, remediation of high hazard sites will be compulso- ry in order to attract foreign investement and to comply with environmental protection standards. A good exam- ple of how to achieve effective and fast risk reduction at relatively low level of investment is the repair measures of the mining dam in Baia Borsa – Novat carried out by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA).

Leskovac

Tuneli i Pare Kosovska Mitrovica

MONTENEGRO

Rozaje

Trepca

SOFIA

A D R I A T I C S E A

Rudnik

Pristina

Berane

Pernik

Niksic Kotor

Kriva Feja

Badovac

Djakovic

Cr & Sb mine & beneficiation mill

PODGORICA

Tivat

Gnjilan

Cu mine & beneficiation complex

Cetinje

Kriva Palanka

Jegunovce

Pb-Zn tailings dam

Lojane

Shkoder

Sasa

Kumanovo Tetovo Gostivar

Probistip

Fushe-Arrez

Zletovo

ITAL

SKOPJE

Kocani

Rubik

Cu mine & mill

Veles

Pb-Zn mine

Bucim

Furshe-Kruje

Radovis

Kicevo

Hazardous industrial site

Negotino

A CEDONI

TIRANA Sharra

Durres

Mining industry hot spots

Mining site

Kavadarci

Ohrid

Smelter complex - Ferrochromium, Fe (steel) & Ni smelters

Suvodol

Nuclear power generation site

Elbasan

Fe-Ni & Sb mine(s) & ferronickel smelter

Serious water pollution

Bitola

ALBANIA

Waste disposal site

Fier

1 to 5 million inhabitants National capital 100 000 to 1 million

Republic boundary Autonomous boundary

Ballsh

Vlore

GREECE

Patos

Inter-entity boundary line

The boundaries and names shown and the designations used on this map do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the United Nations. Map by UNEP/DEWA/GRID-Europe, 2007

100

200

300

Kilometres

BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS

BACKGROUND

MINING

WATER

NATURE

Mining legacies: riches of the past, present day headaches Between 1944 and 1991, the mining, processing, and downstream exploitation of base metals established the Balkans as a major European source of copper, lead, zinc and a global producer of chromite. Mining was one of the flagship industrial sectors, influencing the area more largely than in simply economic terms. The upheaval that subsequently swept through south- east Europe resulted in economic, social and political instability. The disintegration of the Yugoslav common market aggravated economic conditions in the region and in the early 1990s the Balkan economy declined sharply. Industrial output dropped significantly, with a widespread shutdown of operations such as mining. In environmental terms this cuts both ways. With a dra- matic drop in industrial output, pollution decreased. But at the same time plants were either abandoned or privatized under conditions that did not clearly estab- lish environmental liability. Today the legacy of mining is still a serious problem in southeast Europe. On abandoned sites, with no liable le- gal owner, the necessary measures to close the site were never taken – stabilization, water management, replant- ing of vegetation, etc. – to minimize the risk of accidents and prevent environmental pollution. Implementing them now is very expensive. Most modern mining operations consequently include a bonding system that ensures that sufficient financial resources are set aside during the active period of the mine. If appropriate such resources are released when mining stops and the measures men- tioned above need to be taken.

Acid mine drainage and other mine water issues

The situation in the Balkans falls far short of this ideal picture. Coping with the present situation is complicat- ed, with a large number of sites with serious environ- mental impacts, high remediation costs and the liable owners missing. In most cases the government is held accountable. But the huge financial liability attached to any systematic rehabilitation programme represents a challenge that far exceeds the financial or organization- al resources of any one regional actor. In comparison, the lack of expertise required to take practical respon- sibility for dealing with abandoned sites and the associ- ated issues pales to insignificance. There may be a shortage of water, but on the other hand there may also be too much unwanted water. Water from mine voids or waste contains toxic elements at levels that are intolerable for discharge into the natural environment. The contaminants are mostly heavy metals, depending on the composition of the underground material. Micro- organisms which “eat” inorganic energy sources, notably iron, flourish on mining waste and in mines. They require Topics such as land disturbance, air pollution and labour is- sues are prominent in any discussion of the detrimental ef- fects of mining. But in almost all cases, regardless of wheth- er coal, ore or other materials are being mined, they are compounded by water-related problems. They may either be due to the fact that wherever mining occurs, the ground- water level must (almost always) first be lowered to permit mining. This may have far-reaching effects in the area. Limit- ing the water supply obviously impacts on plant life, and consequently the ecosystem and farming. But it may disturb wells too and cause land subsidence.

The Balkan countries have certainly had many other concerns in the last two decades. But they will soon be reaching a point at which the question is no longer what they could do about problem sites, but what they must do. Joining the European Union is the top priority in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Mon- tenegro and Serbia. But this means they must pass and enforce strict environmental legislation. The debate on ongoing pollution from piles of hazardous waste rock, tailings dams, mine voids, open pits, smelters and so on, will soon reach beyond the environment and enter the political arena. In the Balkans, the effects on water are particularly severe. As explained in the Blue Chapter, many waterways cross borders and as the countries are relatively small, many sites are located close to a neighbouring state. The effect of changes in the water regime and water contamination are consequently likely to reach beyond political borders. oxygen and water to prosper, which is not available un- der natural conditions in places where mineral-rich mate- rial is found. Mining, however, creates a feast for them. It not only extracts minerals, bringing them into contact with air and water, as in the mine void, but also maximizes the contact surface by grinding rock into sand-like par- ticles (overburden and tailings). Microbes, much as any living creature, produce waste, in the form of metals and acid. The resulting solution is known as acid mine drain- age (AMD) or acid rock drainage (ARD). These discharges, with a low pH value and rich in heavy metals, affect down- stream ecosystems and make water unsuitable for irriga- tion and other purposes.

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