page_title: Danube
section_title: Ecology and environment
hierarchical_section_title: Danube / International cooperation / Ecology and environment
caption_attribution_description: Română: Pelicani zburând deasupra Dunării în Deltă
context_page_description: The Danube is Europe's second-longest river, after the Volga. It is located in Central and Eastern Europe.
  The Danube was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today flows through 10 countries. The river runs through the 2nd largest number of countries in the world with the Nile running through 11 countries. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for 2,850 km, passing through or bordering Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine before draining into the Black Sea. Its drainage basin extends into nine more countries.
  The Danube river basin is home to fish species such as pike, zander, huchen, Wels catfish, burbot and tench. It is also home to a large diversity of carp and sturgeon, as well as salmon and trout. A few species of euryhaline fish, such as European seabass, mullet, and eel, inhabit the Danube Delta and the lower portion of the river.
  Since ancient times, the Danube has become a traditional trade route in Europe. Today, 2,415 km of its total length are navigable. The river is also an important source of hydropower and drinking water.
context_section_description: The International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) is an organization consisting of 14 member states (Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, Montenegro and Ukraine) and the European Union. The commission, established in 1998, deals with the whole Danube river basin, which includes tributaries and the groundwater resources. Its goal is to implement the Danube River Protection Convention by promoting and coordinating sustainable and equitable water management, including conservation, improvement and rational use of waters and the implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive.
caption: Pelicans in the Danube Delta, Romania
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