Although decades have passed since the Bucharest Convention signed on 21 April 1992 for the protection of the Black Sea and the Black Sea Strategic Action Plan adopted in Istanbul on 31 October 1996, environmental problems continue. The agreements to which Türkiye, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Russia and Georgia are parties aim to prevent marine pollution and protect the ecosystem. However, in the coastal litter assessment published by the European Environment Agency in 2024, the Black Sea stood out as the area with the highest pollution level among the European marine regions examined. The fact that 86 percent of the approximately 1.5 million pieces of garbage recorded in coastal surveys across Europe was plastic showed the extent of the threat.
MICROPLASTIC HAZARD
Pollution in the Black Sea is no longer limited to garbage washing up on the shores. In the scientific research published in December 2025, In samples taken from six different stations on the Giresun coast, an average of 0.12 microplastic particles per liter of seawater and 72.22 microplastic particles per kilogram of beach sand were determined. It was noteworthy that 89 percent of the detected particles were smaller than 50 micrometers.
PROTECTION OF 116 THOUSAND HECTARS
The Istranca Mountains, which are of critical importance for the future of the Black Sea, lie between Türkiye and Bulgaria. Bulgaria protected an area of 116 thousand 54 hectares with the Strandzha Nature Park, which it declared in 1995. The park, which is the largest protected natural area in the country, aims to protect forests and biodiversity, especially the basins of the Veleka and Rezve rivers. Although there are important protected areas on the Turkish side, such as the İğneada Longoz Forests National Park, environmentalists want a broader conservation approach covering the entire Istranca.
THE SEA IS ALSO AFFECTED
Making a statement on the occasion of International Black Sea Day, Doku Association Chairman Göksal Çidem stated that the Black Sea cannot be protected only against pollution on the sea surface. Pointing out that interventions aimed at the fragmentation of natural areas in Istranca Forests may also threaten streams and coastal ecosystems, Çidem made the following assessment: “Protecting the Black Sea is not only about protecting the sea. It is also about protecting the streams, rivers, forests, wetlands and coastal ecosystems that feed it. The objection we raised in Istrancalar is not only for the trees; “It is for the protection of the Rezve Stream, the Veleka River, bird migration routes, the land and the future.”
CALL FOR STRANJAS
Recalling the provisions of the Bucharest Convention to prevent land-based pollution, Çidem emphasized that Türkiye’s international obligations should be taken into account not only in the sea but also in the basins feeding the Black Sea. Pointing to the protection model in Bulgaria, Çidem said: He wanted the Turkish side of Istranca Forests to be evaluated with the aim of biosphere reserve status. Çidem said, “Istranca Forests should be declared a biosphere reserve area and secured by taking the conservation approach on the Bulgarian side as an example. The protection of Strandja as a whole is the basic condition for the protection of the Black Sea.”
