This year the Danube Day motto was “Get active for the Rivers!” It has to be mentioned that in 2009 the Danube River Basin Management Plan was approved, in which the main problems and actions to be taken to solve these problems were identified. Therefore it is logical and practical to declare Danube Day 2010 as a day of public actions and initiatives and to contribute to the implementation of the Action Plan and involvement of broad Danube community.

Every year since the beginning of the Danube Day celebration in the Ukrainian Danube Delta the children actions to clean up the river banks and wetlands were the obvious measures of the Danube Day activities. But children can not solve the waste problems, created by adults. Therefore, this year it was decided in addition to the traditional measures of garbage gathering to make step ahead to sustainable waste management and involve young people into investigation of the waste problems in the region and to develop the recommendations for sustainable wastes management at community and household levels and to draw the community and local government attention to the problem.

The representatives of NGO “MAMA-86”, Danube youth club of c. Vylkove, Danube biosphere reserve, Southern-Ukrainian organization “Dobra Volya” and Black See Branch of the Ukrainian Environmental Academy of science took part in the preparation and organization of the Danube Day 2010 in the Lower Danube region.

Week before the Danube Day, on 22 June the public initiative “Clean Danube — let do it!” was launched by youth eco-expedition to study the plastic wastes problems in city Izmail. Young people started the inventory of the spontaneous wastes damping in the settlements and questionnaire of local dwellers about waste management at the household level in Izmail city. On 26–29 June “Clean river bank — clean Danube!” actions took place in Izmail and Vylkove. The participants of these actions were the members and activists of the Danube clubs and local dwellers. The main partner of the clean up action on “Zero” km of the Danube was Danube-Carpathian Program of WWF. On “0” km youth worked from Vylkove and Izmail. During the “Clean river bank — clean Danube!” action in Vylkove near 300 kg of plastic! Wastes were collected. Vylkove branch of the Danube basin body helped to transport this plastic wastes to the city waste dumping place. In Izmail students and activists of the Danube club cleaned up the territory of the city beach and Fort. The city department on housing and communal services helped to take out collected garbage.

Children have possibility to take part in the initiative by participation in the “exchange!” action. According to the action rules it was possible for the children to exchange 15 empty PET bottles on 1 bottle with drinks. This action continued for several days in Vylkove and in Izmail. In Vylkove 60 schoolchildren took part in this action. The winners of the action were: Ivan Poliakov and Artem Shevchenko, who collected 246(!) empty bottles in the channels of the Vylkove; and the second winners were Vovchenko Boris and Andrey Efimov, who collected 178 bottles.

During the summer the public will study the problem of garbage in the region. In autumn obtained results will be analyzed, presented to local authorities and residents and used to discuss the issues and solutions of the problem in the region at local — household levels and steps forward to waste separation, minimization and recycling.

Despite the fact that the high water just come to the region at the Danube Day and the threat of dump break was real , that cold and rainy weather moved plans, the Danube day concerts of local folk groups on 27 and 29 June in Izmail and Reni were held with a support and active assistance of local municipalities. On 29–30 June the Regional “Danube Master” contest took place in Izmail. The winners were awarded and received the gifts.

It should be noted that despite a very busy time because of the high water in the Danube, the State Committee of Water Management of Ukraine and the Danube basin Department on water management supported and helped to “Clean river bank — clean Danube!” action. The main partners of the Danube Day 2010 in Lower Danube were the Global Water Partnership (GWP) of Ukraine and the Regional GWP in CEE, who provided funds to study the problem of garbage in the region and support the celebration of the Danube in Izmail, Reni and Kiliya. Coca-Cola Beverages Ukraine supported the “Exchange!” action by supplying its production for exchange.

Although not all plans were implemented, and the weather this year tested the endurance of each, but those who joined the celebration of the Great River, who did something to preserve and honor the beauty of the Danube River got moral satisfaction and a bunch of great memories of the Danube Day 2010 in Lower Danube. We wait all next year! Join us!