1. Eco-TIRAS Climate Projects’ results and Perspectives Ilya Trombitsky Eco-TIRAS

2. BST Project and its outcomes 1. Public climate change awareness and consultation: four meetings with local communities and MD & UA NGOs (by two in Moldavian and Ukrainian parts of the lower Dniester River basin) - 156 stakeholders; 2. Climate Change issues at the summer school for students and young researchers from Moldova (including Transdniester region) and Ukraine - Climate Change Issue Day for 80 youngsters (age 16-22) from both banks of the Dniester River; 3. Review of Moldova and Ukraine national water management legal frameworks: development of recommendations for legislations improvement; 4. An International Conference: “Cross-border cooperation and public participation in the development and implementation of effective policies and measures for dealing with the impacts of climate change on transboundary waters”: the Conference’s recommendations delivered to the national governments. Proceedings are published in 1000 copies and placed to website.

3. BST Project and its outcomes The project combined both concrete immediate actions, such as public climate change awareness seminars, and targeted research basing the seminars’ content and contributions to scientific and mass-media publications; such unity of theory and practice provided the development and improvement of new specific knowledge on water-related adaptation policies and measures; Publication of the book on climate change adaptation enhanced specific regional information on climate change effects for north-west Black Sea waters and ecosystems; Two-way communication and interaction between researchers/academia and policy- makers/stakeholders facilitated the development of policy options across multiple water-dependent sectors; The coordination of needed political power facilitated the adoption of water-efficient technologies and good practices. Youth Summer School permitted to deliver climate change adaptation approaches to youth.

4. Revision of policies and recommendations Improvement of bilateral cooperation legal framework on Dniester River basin Revision of land use policies, stimulation of forest lands expansion by transmission of agricultural lands to forest fund Taking into consideration of climate change in water legislation of MD and UA and improvement of legislation for regulation in dry period by prioritization of ecological uses Improvement of rule of law concerning water protection zones regime, wetlands and protected areas Synchronization of MD and UA legal approaches with WFD in relation to Dniester water resources.

5. River adaptation and protection from floods Revision of necessity of numerous water basins on tributaries; Wide discussion of the Rules of exploitation of the Dniester hydro energo node; Optimization of Dniester hydrological regime taking into consideration the needs of water users, ecosystems and wetlands.

6. Wetlands protection Stronger legislation application on the construction in wetland areas Restoration of wetlands; Joint Ramsar wetlands, including “Lower Dniester” national parks in MD and UA

7. On adaptation of natural and modified ecosystems: To form refugiums to raise sustainability of forestry and agriculture; To propose the Govt of Ukraine to establish a moratorium on forest cut in the river basin as well as in river protection belts of Dniester and Turunchiuk; Ecological restauration of low productive lands in wetlands; Creation of polders; Create Environmental Network with social functions; To use the concept of agricultural territories of high natural value, which is uses in the EU General Agricultural Policy

8. Fish conservation and restoration in Lower Dniester basin: Biological invasions - monitoring; Coordinated research measures – current status of fish fauna, food organisms and water environment quality; Modeling of the the ways of compensation of climate changes impact in conditions of regulated discharge of Dniester; Restoration of Lower Dniester natural spawning places; Extension of managerial efficiency of administration of protected areas, strengthening protection; Close coordination of both countries in frames of Amendment 5 to the Dniester basin treaty on water biodiversity.

9. Prevention of negative impact of climate change to health of population in Dniester basin: Inventary of polution sources; To prevent any construction in Lower Dniester protected areas; Restoration of recreation zones; Research of impact on ecology pathogenic vectors and epidemic processes Non-infrectious diseases (cardiovascular etc)

10. Last river basin climate adaptation conference and a monograph (2011, RLF, BST&CTC support)

11. Project realised by Ecospectrum NGO, Bender, Transnistria

12. ‘Finnish’ project scope: Assessment of climate change vulnerability in the Moldavian part (MD & TR) of the Dniester River basin and elaboration of adaptation measures to prevent the further environment degrading, worsening of population well-being and its impoverishment resulting in emigration.

13. Steps of ‘Finnish’ project Collection of climatic information (monthly temperature and precipitation) for baseline thirty years (1981-2010) for weather stations in the Dniester basin; Analysis of current trends and variations in the basin’s climate; Development of climate change scenarios of likely future regional climate in the 21 century; Selection and analysis of a socioeconomic situation in the Moldavian and Transnistrian parts of the basin – Moldova and Transnistria Assessment of the socioeconomic sensitivity and adaptive potential on the level of Moldova’s administrative-territorial units (ATU) in the basin; Assessment of the basin’s physiographical sensitivity to climatic hazards; Assessment of climate change vulnerability of natural and water resources; Spatial analysis of vulnerability and its mapping

14. Expected ‘Finnish’ project results and outputs The spatial differentiation of the Dniester basin by its vulnerability to climate change, The identification of the most vulnerable natural and social systems and the development of proposals and recommendations to improve their adaptive capacity and resilience to a likely climatic hazards and risks. Main outputs will be a basin-level stakeholder seminar and a scientific collection (monograph) that will summarize its findings and conclusions.

15. Elaboration of climate change vulnerability indices (WB), Eco-TIRAS in cooperation with Acclimatise, UK, and recent actions Project for three EECCA countries (AZ, AR, MD) Vulnerability indices were elaborated on the basis of social and environmental dimensions on regional level – south, center, north etc. *** Last actions: June 15 2012 – MD-UA seminar on 20 years of Helsinki Water Convention 23 – 29 June 2012, 8-14 July and 8-15 August – expeditions by kayaks on Dniester – different groups of stakeholders; 4-14 July 2013 – Youth Summer School for students 16-22 years + 3 expeditions along Dniester 20-21 September – Dniester River basin Conference, Chisinau

16. Eco-TIRAS Dniester Youth Summer School – 2013 – lesson on climate change

17. Dniester expedition of school teachers (Moldova & Trasnistria)

18. Who helps us to work:

19. Welcome to Dniester Conference: www.eco-tiras.org Last presentation acceptance date: August 1, 2013 Up to 5 pages