Adjarian Rivers (including deltaic areas)

Fish taxonomy-related counts; Fish behaviour; Fishery characterisation; River flow and discharge

Mass spectrometers; spectrophotometers

In period of only three decades, the Black Sea has suffered the catastrophic degradation due to water pollution and irrational exploitation of fish stocks. Georgian contributions to the pollution include oil spills and releases of wastewater and ballast water from ships using the ports of Poti and Batumi, discharges of oily wastes from the oil refinery at Batumi, and discharges by the Rv. Rioni, which include municipal sewage, industrial waste and agricultural runoff. As a direct result of this pollution, as well as other factors, the ecology of the Black Sea is in serious decline. From the 15 commercial species of fish, including salmon and sturgeon, 13 have disappeared completely. Fish communities have shrunk dramatically as the result of eutrophication, the inflow of untreated sewage from point and non-point sources, increased turbidity and overharvesting. This is a serious matter for a fishery previously landing 2000 tons of fish per year. The Black Sea Salmon project is the first within the EU Tacis Black Sea Environmental Programme directly focusing on development of the Black Sea salmon conservation strategy and addressing the underlying causes of the decline of the Black Sea salmon. The overall objective of this project produce a management strategy for Georgian Black Sea Salmon to conserve and enhance depleted stocks, and to promote rational and sustainable use of fish resources in the Black Sea in a national and international context. Specific objectives are stated as being to review the existing data on biology and historic status of Black Sea Salmon, both in Georgia and from the whole of the Black Sea Region; explore the causal agents for the decline in populations; Develop a management strategy for conservation and enhancement of self-sustaining Black Sea salmon stocks; Develop an investment plan to support a long term Black Sea Salmon conservation strategy.

Scientific, Research Firm "GAMMA"
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Georgia