An off-site meeting was held on Mount Pip Ivan with the participation of representatives of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on Environmental Policy and Nature Management, the State Environmental Inspectorate of Ukraine, the State Environmental Inspectorate of the Carpathian District, government bodies, environmental protection structures and the scientific community. During the meeting, the International Scientific Center “Observatory” of the Vasyl Stefanyk Carpathian National University was presented as a promising high-altitude platform for ecological, climatic, atmospheric and biological monitoring of the Carpathian region.
The event was a continuation of the expert discussion that took place the day before in Yaremche and was dedicated to the state of Carpathian rivers, watersheds, biodiversity and the need for scientifically based management of mountain areas. At the same time, the meeting at Pip Ivan allowed to expand this conversation – from the separate issue of water resources to a broader vision of the Carpathians as a complex natural system that requires long-term monitoring, data integration and interdisciplinary scientific support.
It is symbolic that the discussion continued precisely in the Chornohira watershed – the territory where the basins of two important Carpathian river systems are formed: the Prut and the White Cheremosh. It is here that the processes begin that subsequently determine the quality of water resources, the state of ecosystems and the ecological sustainability of a significant part of the Carpathian region. Vasyl Stefanyk Carpathian National University was represented during the field meeting by the Chairman of the University’s Academic Council, Professor Ihor Tsependa, Director of the International Scientific Center “Observatory”, Candidate of Biological Sciences Myroslava Mylenka, Associate Professor of the Department of Biology and Ecology Nadiya Riznychuk, Head of the Department of Interaction with Stakeholders Arsen Kyzym, as well as students of the Department of Biology and Ecology.
During the meeting, issues directly related to the formation of environmental policy for the Carpathian region were discussed: development of a long-term environmental monitoring system, protection of water resources, implementation of a basin approach to the management of mountain areas, assessment of the impact of recreational and infrastructure loads on watersheds, preservation of biodiversity, strengthening preventive control and use of scientific data in the preparation of management decisions.
Professor Igor Tsependa presented the history of the restoration of the Observatory on Pip Ivan as a unique Ukrainian-Polish scientific project and outlined the current stage of its development. Special emphasis was placed on the fact that the reconstruction and filling of the MNC “Observatory” with new content became possible thanks to consistent international cooperation, institutional support and the university’s vision of the role of high-altitude science for the Carpathian region.
In his speech, Igor Tsependa emphasized that the further development of the Center requires systematic interaction of the university with state institutions, environmental protection structures, international partners and representatives of the parliamentary level. It is such interaction that can ensure the transition from individual scientific initiatives to a sustainable model of high-mountain monitoring, which is important for environmental safety, water resource protection and the formation of modern development policy in the Carpathians. Myroslava Mylenka presented the main directions of development of the MNC “Observatory” in the context of environmental monitoring in the Carpathians.
The Center’s capabilities for climate observations, research of high-altitude ecosystems, bioindication, analysis of the state of watersheds, digital monitoring, assessment of the impact of anthropogenic load, and formation of a scientific basis for preventive management of mountain areas were discussed. Particular attention was paid to the fact that the location of the MNC “Observatory” on Mount Pip Ivan gives the Center special importance for studying processes that begin in the highlands but affect the state of rivers, watersheds, ecosystems, and communities much lower down.
That is why the Observatory can become an important top link in the Carpathian monitoring system – from climatic and hydrometeorological observations to assessing the state of natural complexes, water resources and biodiversity. Students of the Department of Biology and Ecology of the Carpathian University joined the event. Their presence emphasized the educational mission of the MNC “Observatory” as a space where a new generation of specialists is formed, able to work with the real challenges of mountain areas: climate change, the state of water resources, ecosystem degradation, biodiversity and the need for modern environmental monitoring.
