New independent centers promised for Newly Independent States

The Newly Independent States (NIS) should soon have a network of regional environmental centers of their own. At least that was the message broadcast by potential supporters at the Sofia "Environment for Europe" Ministerial Conference. Together with Moldova, Russia and Ukraine, the countries in which these centers would initially be based, the European Commission, Finland, Norway, Switzerland, and the United States signed a statement at the conference to take further steps "to establish an environmental service organization that should support public participation, the development of civil society and regional cooperation in the NIS."

"Strong public pressure is vital to move environmental issues, but it is not something that happens in the short term, although it develops in the medium and long term. In the short term it must be promoted and encouragedÐthe duty to care for the environment must go hand in hand with the right to self-expression on economic choice. Therefore a REC-like institution is a real necessity," says Tom Garvey, deputy director general of the EU's DG XI.

The EU delegation in Sofia, headed by Garvey, expressed strong support for the project but didn't reveal any further details.

The United States also committed to support the project. Bill Nitze, head of the US delegation at the Sofia conference, promised to provide USD 500,000 next year to get the project off the ground. Though nowhere near the estimated USD 10.5 million needed to run NREC for the first five years, the verbal commitments made by both the EU and the US should act as catalysts to encourage other countries to commit further financial support.

ESTABLISHMENT OF THE NREC IN THE NIS will help find solutions to environmental problems, like the degradation of this Ukrainian coastline near a fish factory on the Sea of Azov.


The Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe also supported the project, dubbed New Regional Environmental Center (NREC), by signing the agreement. Despite the similarities, the NREC will be independent from the Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe. The success of the original REC has been cited as one of the reasons Western governments are willing to support the NREC initiative.

Feasibility study gets it right

Supporters rallied behind a feasibility study presented as an official background document at the Sofia conference by the REC. The study, conducted over a seven-month period leading up to Sofia, reveals a serious need for a REC-type service organization in the NIS. The study was financed by the EU, the US, REC, France, Norway and Finland, and was commissioned by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe Working Group of Senior Government Officials.

"The feasibility study shows there is a large demand for the services that are provided currently by the REC in Budapest. We've seen great success with the Budapest center in building a network of NGOs and providing training and information, and I think this service is needed in Russia, the Ukraine and Moldova, as well as other parts of the former Soviet Union," says Dan Thompson, program coordinator at the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

The feasibility study is based on a needs analysis and the experiences of REC Budapest. According to the report, approximately 1,200 environmental NGOs operate in Moldova, Russia and Ukraine. A survey of 250 of these NGOs identified their priority needs as strengthening environmental networks, improving access to information and access to financial resources.

The needs of central and local governments were also assessed. National governments pointed to capacity building and the development of progressive legislation and information databases as the issues at the top of their priority list. Regional and local authorities were also concerned with these issues, but they added environmental health as one of the most pressing concerns.

Head Office in Ukraine?

The feasibility study not only indicated there is a need for such an organization, it spelled out what it should look like and what it should do.

Like the original REC, NREC would provide all environmental stakeholders with information services, training and capacity-building programs, and grants for NGOs in the countries under its mandate. These activities would foster public participation and promote regional cooperation, two areas which are still underdeveloped in the NIS.

The report suggests that a coordination and information center be located somewhere in the Ukraine, perhaps Odessa or Kiev, and that national offices be set up in Nizhnii, Russia, and a different Ukrainian city. In Moldova, the report recommends the establishment of an NREC representative office. And as Thompson suggests, other countries in the former Soviet Union could also benefit from such an organization, leaving the door wide open for expansion once the initial phase proves successful.

The question now is when. The signed statement is only the first step in what will be a lengthy process. It will probably be three years or more before such an organization is up and running. In the mean time, NGOs and governments in the NIS will have to address environmental issues on their own.

THE BULLETIN * AUTUMN 1995