Environment and conflict resolution in Europe and the CIS
Ben Slay
Director UNDP Bratislava Regional Centre
14 April 2008
Development and Transition newsletter
Published three times annually by UNDP, London School of Economics
– Current issue: Energy and
Environment
Goals:
– Provide UNDP, independent views on development, transition issues in Europe, Central Asia – Disseminate policy lessons of successful UNDP projects
and Environment
Issue 9: Energy
Key theme: Environment and conflict prevention (Cyprus) Other themes of this issue:
– Biodiversity (Cyprus, Uzbekistan) – Energy geopolitics (Russia, Western CIS countries, European Union) – Central Asia’s environmental, development challenges – Role of civil society in environmental policies (Romania, other new EU member states)
Environment and conflict prevention: In Cyprus . . .
Nicholas Jarraud: ―Hawks, Doves—and Wild Sheep‖
Biodiversity has flourished along the Green Line
– Good opportunities for bi-communal engagement – Would a settlement put biodiversity at risk?
. . . And elsewhere
United Nations (UNDP, UNEP) has extensive experience helping to manage environment-conflict links Examples from region:
– Crimea – Prespa Lake – Environment and Security initiative
Crimea: The conflict that wasn’t
July 1993: The
Economist
warns of a ―long-running, acrimonious, possibly bloody and conceivably nuclear, dispute over Crimea‖
Historical roots
Soviet period:
– 1944: Mass deportation of Crimean Tatars – 1954: ―Crimean Autonomous Soviet Republic‖ transferred from Russia to Ukraine
In late 1980s:
– ―Rehabilitation‖, return of 250,000 Tatars begins – Ukrainian, Russian, Tatar nationalisms seem set to collide
What to do about:
– Ukraine’s nuclear arsenal? – Future of Black Sea fleet?
Crimea’s ethnic composition
Tatar 12% Others 6%
Ukrainian 24%
Russian 58%
2001 census data
How has conflict in Crimea been averted?
Russian elites satisfied with autonomy
– Independence, anschluss not necessary
Helpful role of external actors
– UN, OSCE – Turkey, other bilateral donors
Successful development, environmental interventions
UNDP’s Crimean Integrated Development Programme
Programme’s evolution:
– Starts in 1995 as ―emergency response‖ – Moved to integrated regional development
Focus on contested areas
– Works closely with Crimean government
Size:
– $25 million portfolio – 150,000 beneficiaries
Strong environmental component:
– Access to water, sanitation services – Sustainable land management
Prespa Lake
Borders Greece, Albania, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
– Many multiethnic local communities
Important ecosystem
– Significant biodiversity (migratory birds) – Water source for local communities, farms – Ecotourism potential
Prespa Lake, from FYROM side
Threats . . . And responses
Trans-border threats:
– Agricultural run-off (fertiliser, pesticides) – Untreated sewage disposal – Deforestation, silting, flood risks
Response: $4.3 million Global Environmental Facility project (2008-2010)
– All three countries involved – Combines principles of:
Integrated water resources management Biodiversity conservation (6000 hectares covered)
Environment and Security Initiative
Regional partnership of:
– International agencies (UNDP, UNEP, UNECE, OSCE) – Governments, civil society
Goal: Help governments manage trans-border environmental risks
– Hot spots – Disaster prevention
Activities:
– Political support for stakeholder dialogue, networks – Public awareness, access to information, participation – Capacity building
Hot spots in Central Asia
Kanibadam Kadamjai
Abandoned Soviet-era chemical dumps in danger of polluting the Syr-Darya river
Submissions welcome!
Upcoming issues:
– Climate change
June 2008
– State reform
November 2008
March 2009 June 2009
– Civil society
– Rural development
For more information: www.developmentandtransition.net