New Approaches in the Assessment of the Black Sea Ecosystems

As it is already known, in the last 10–15 years the Black Sea has attracted special attention from the international community represented by members of governments, parliaments, academic institutions and non-governmental organizations in numerous countries and first of all in the riparian ones, all of them animated by the wish to save this sea from the ecological collapse revealed both by the facts and data of scientific research and by the economic decline.

After the Black Sea ecological crisis was confirmed worldwide, studied and managed equally by the scientific community, political factors and civil society, and numerous publications appeared as a final proof, today specialists think that the ecosystem ecological state witnesses a slight recovery. A positive fact, giving us hopes for an improved future of the benthic ecosystems, is the reappearance of some species considered extinct or extremely rare nowadays in the Black Sea. Among them species of sponges – Suberites, Adocia, mollusks – Calyptrea chinensis, tunicata – Asciedella aspersa, forms sensitive to disturbing factors, some of them extremely valuable for the economy of the sea.

May we speak of a gradual recovery of the Black Sea? Do we witness an improvement of the ecological situation of this sea? A betterment of the planktonic and benthic ecosystems? A redressing of the fishing resources? Is the economic decline of the riparian countries really saving the Black Sea?

Nevertheless, let’s hope the ecological pressure will decrease simultaneously with the diminishing fertilizers and other chemicals used in agriculture or with the reduction of the fishing effort. But this is far from being all. There are also the manipulations of the hydrologic regime of Black Sea tributaries. There are also the large-scale variations. There are the global changes. There are so many steps to set, to know, without which it is hard to predict the Black Sea evolution.

In order to asses and answer if and to what extent the state of the Black Sea ecosystem has improved in comparison with the final decades of the 20th century, a new approach is necessary, which should be expressed in an Integrated Programmme of Studies and Management of the organic link between natural systems and socio-economic systems (Fig. 1). An alliance is necessary in order to achieve integrated systems of people and nature. This means holistic approach vs. sectional approach, the holistic approach being an integrative ecological approach.

For experts, managers and stakeholders the conclusions which come out consist in the following goals:
- the necessity of reaffirming the principle of applying the integrative holistic approach to the knowledge and management of the Black Sea ecosystem;
- considering the importance of benthic eco-systems as barometer of the ecological health state of the sea, which generates resources and services for socio-economic systems;
- highlighting the importance of developing basic ecological concepts – complexity of ecosystems, resilience, vulnerability, distur-bance, integrality of natural systems and socio-economic systems etc. in order to improve knowledge and management of the Black Sea;
- the necessity of thorough understanding of the Black Sea biodiversity process and building human resources in the field.

We shall continue by discussing only one aspect that concerns benthic life assessment of the Black Sea.