Brussels, 07/03/2000 (Agence Europe) - The international task force responsible for evaluating the damage provoked by the cyanide pollution in the Danube region after the Baia Mare accident (Romania) is now ready. Furthermore, its President Tom Garvey issued from the European Commission (see EUROPE of 16 February, p.16). It will be made up of 6 high civil servants from international or regional organisations for environmental protection who have just been nominated.
Here is the list: Mr. Jean-Francois Verstrynge joint Director General of the Directorate General for Environment at the European Commission; Mr. Emil Marinov President of the International Commission for the protection of the Danube and minister delegate for the Environment in Bulgaria; Mr. Robert Rakics Department Head in the Hungarian Ministry for the Environment; Mrs. Liliana Mara, Director General at the Ministry of waters and forests and the protection of the environment in Romania; Mr. Kaj Barlund, Director of the division "Environment and Human settlements" at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe; Mr. Philip Weller Director of the programme "Danube-Carpates" of the WWF (World Wildlife Fund for Nature).
The task force will be seated in Vienna, in the buildings of the International Commission for the protection of the Danube. Its secretariat will soon be set-up. In the mean time, all requests for information may be, provisionally, obtained, with the European Commission at the following address: E-mail: env-danubetf@cec.eu.int, Tel: (02) 299 66 60, Internet site: http: //http://www.europa.eu.int/ comm/ environment/ enlarge/home.htm.