EU Project: Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan

EU Project: Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan  Regional Project  Beneficiary Countries: Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan  Managed from the project office in Tbilisi  Client: European Commission, DG EuropeAid  Consultant: EPTISA & Grontmij-CarlBro Consortium  Start: June 2008  Duration: extended until Dec 2011

EU Project: Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan Project purpose:  To help Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan to improve river water quality in the Kura River basin through transboundary cooperation and adoption of the river basin management approach  To improve capabilities of environmental authorities and monitoring establishments in Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan in water resources management in the Kura River basin

EU Project: Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan Project Partners: Georgia:  Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources  National Environment Agency Armenia:  Ministry of Nature Protection  Water Resources Management Agency  Environmental Impact Monitoring Centre Azerbaijan  Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources  National Hydrometeorology Department  Environmental Monitoring Department

EU Project: Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan Key Activities:  Pilot projects: Draft river basin management plans (RBMP) for 5 pilot river basins using EU Water Framework Directive methodology  Joint Transboundary River Monitoring Programme to harmonise sampling and analysis procedures  Proposals for improvements in the data structures and information flows to facilitate decision making  Training and technical guidelines - EU Study Tour for the beneficiaries’ staff from the project countries  Public awareness raising of the priority transboundary water issues in the Kura-Aras River basin

EU Project: Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan To help Project Partners to understand EU Water Framework Directive methodology the following key documents translated to Georgian, Armenian and Azeri, printed and delivered to the Beneficiaries  EU Water Framework Directive  EU Floods Directive  WFD Technical Guidance: Identification of Water Bodies  WFD Technical Guidance: Analysis of Pressures and Impacts  Introduction to Biological Monitoring of Water Quality

EU Project: Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan Pilot river basins:  basin characterization/pressure-impact analysis  identification “water bodies at risk”  setting environmental objectives  programme of measures

EU Project: Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan Pilot river basins: Alazani-Ganykh; Debed-Khrami; Aghstev; Ganjachai; Aragvi

EU Project: Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan Joint Transboundary River Monitoring April, June, September, December 2009  Agreed common procedure and reporting format: before sampling, sampling, after sampling  Analysis: standard methods  Inter-laboratory testing  Review of existing practices and QA procedures: questionnaires, visits to the labs  Workshops  glp guidance

EU Project: Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan Joint Transboundary River Monitoring

4th RBM Workshop JMP in Kura River basin Selected parameters Temperature C Transparency Dissolved oxygen Oxygen saturation pH Salinity Conductivity Total suspended/Total dissolved solids BOD5 COD Ammonia nitrogen, ammonia Nitrate nitrogen, nitrates Phosphates Copper Zink Iron Manganese Cadmium Nickel Led Molybdenum Petroleum products Arsenic Phenols

JMP in Kura River basin Overall Evaluation of three Sampling events 4th RBM Workshop

JMP in Kura River basin River water quality data – comparison of heavy metals (1) There are differences in the concentrations of heavy metals between the countries and results from the National Reference Laboratory. RPD= (NRL-country)*100 (NRL+country)/2 RPD for Zn ARM-104% AZ-195% GE-17% The lower value of RPD means the more precise measurements. 4th RBM Workshop

JMP in Kura River basin River water quality data – comparison of heavy metals (2) 4th RBM Workshop

JMP in Kura River basin River water quality data – comparison of heavy metals (3) RPD= (NRL-country)*100 (NRL+country)/2 RPD for Cu ARM-1,7% AZ-114% GE-92% The lower value of RPD means the more precise measurements.

Interlab testing Preliminary comparison of the results from the 1st and the 2nd Inter- laboratory testing 4th Workshop

JMP in Kura River basin River water quality data from the 2nd and the 3rd Sampling (3) However, there is better situation with NO3 and PO4 and in the case of 3rd sampling the results are comparable. 4th RBM Workshop

EU Project: Trans-Boundary River Management Phase II for the Kura River basin – Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan

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