The studying and protection of the Black Sea environment and the sustainable use and management of its resources is key focus area for TotalEnergies EP Bulgaria business activities and CSR program.
Naturally, our scientific partner in this endeavor is the Institute of Oceanology (IO-BAS) as the National Marine Research and Expert Center at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences conducting fundamental and applied research in the field of oceanography aimed at developing a strategy for sustainable development and management of the Black Sea.
Sensitivity Mapping of the Black Sea Coast – Joint Project with the Institute of Oceanology
In 2015 TotalEnergies and its partners started to cooperate with the Institute of Oceanology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences as part of the safety and environmental preparation process for the exploration activities offshore of Bulgaria.
The initially developed Environmental Sensitivity Map (ESM) focusing on the Bulgarian sectors of the Black Sea was later enriched by the scientists of the Institute of Oceanology, and as a result the Sensitivity Mapping and Analysis of the Bulgarian Black Sea Coastal Zone (Black Sea Coast Almanac) was published.
Contributing to the Knowledge of the Black Sea Coast
The Black Sea Coast Almanac contains valuable information on the environmental status of the Bulgarian coast from Durankulak to Rezovo for both students, scientists and the general public. The high-quality publication comprising articles from scientists, pictures and maps was the first one in 40 years to describe comprehensively the sensitive areas of the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, including its geology, flora and fauna, habitats and archaeological sites.
The book has been digitalized in 2018 and is accessible in English for everyone interested in the subject.
TotalEnergies EP Bulgaria as a Responsible Member of the Black Sea Community
TotalEnergies EP Bulgaria donated the Black Sea Coast Almanac to numerous national and local stakeholders, including schools, universities, libraries, ministries, Black Sea municipalities, NGOs and others with the aims to increase the awareness on the status of the Black Sea coast.
In 2019 we supported financially the publication of the Bulgarian version of the Almanac and we continued with the free distribution of the books (more than 350) to different organizations and administrations.
Handbook for Maritime Culture
This joint project of the Association “For intelligent growth” and TotalEnergies EP Bulgaria encourages youngsters to learn how to behave at sea, to know better the Black Sea and to learn how to preserve its treasures.
The creation of a handbook for maritime culture, started in 2020. In the first phase, the Association “For intelligent growth”, gathered a group of students and mentors with the aim to collect information and to write texts, in accessible and comprehensible language, about different aspects of the maritime culture (etiquette at the boat and on the ship, preserving the flora and the fauna in the Black Sea, fines for pollution, marine professions, women in marine professions, safe behavior at the beach). Thanks to TotalEnergies EP Bulgaria, Cor Caroli academy provided to the students the chance to follow trainings in sailing at sea.
The second phase, realized entirely with the financial support of TotalEnergies EP Bulgaria, resulted in designing of the handbook and printing of 2000 copies of it. From April 2022 the books have been distributed for free to students, to pupils, to University, school and municipal libraries, to volunteers in the initiative “Let’s clean Bulgaria together”.
The electronic version of the handbook in Bulgarian is available online here and in Cor Caroli sailing academy’s website.
This initiative is part of TotalEnergies EP Bulgaria’s commitment to support Black Sea projects and to promote the sustainable use and protection of the marine resources.
It will continue by gathering of a group of students for the cause of creating of a marine palette with useful visuals on various sea related topics.