Which is expected help you match next week. It . Yes. There are and american stocks have been given a boost after the us and china two species of struck a preliminary trade agreement, easing tensions dolphin in the black sea. But at the between the worlds moment, no one knows how badly they two biggest have been affected by economies. They have been engaged in an all the acrimonious trade pollution. War. Now on bbc news the black sea is europes most polluted, but asjonah fisher finds out, thanks to a Major International clean up effort, there are now signs that the sea is starting to though its overall condition remains grim, this is not a story without recover. Hope. The black sea the black sea is beautiful. It does appear, is a fantastic place, there are thousands thanks in part to efforts along the of living species in it. Some of danube, to have turned them are very unique. The corner. In very, very in europes south eastern corner, there is a see general terms, if that for decades served as the i regions dustbin. This is could put it in one sentence is now a real that the black problem, where sea is people are dying. Recovering. For fertilisers, industrial chemicals, raw sewage those who despair that humanity is fertilisers, industrial chemicals, raw sewage have flowed unchecked incapable of rising to into the black the scale of sea. Past tourist the Global Environmental crisis, the beaches, ruining black sea is an fishing grounds. Example of how, with into the black sea. Past tourist beaches, ruining fishing groundsm would kill the black sea, sustained effort, a seemingly endless kind of people would kill the black sea, people would not be swimming destruction can be slowed and just, in it, fish would not be swimming in it, fish maybe, would not be living it. It smells like rotten eggs. Turned. But having hit rock bottom, is europes most polluted see finally cleaning up its act . Do you think the black sea is now on its way hello. It may be a windy, showery, back . And quite cold weekend to come but at least there will be some sunshine occasionally. Here is the picture. Low pressure dominating the scene, these disturbances moving on through, with drier, brighter gaps and the isobars quite close together. It is going to be blustery out there. Too much wind, really, to allow too much in the way of frost to start the day on saturday. Just a few pockets in scotland, maybe one or two icy patches around as well. For many of us, there will be sunny spells from the word go to understand the black but showers are coming. Seas problems, inland. This area moving north and east across england and wales. Look throughout the day, a feed of showers coming into northern ireland, inland. To wintry on hills. And into scotland, particularly the rivers that fill it, in the west, frequent showers here. Heavy downpours at lower levels. Reaching thousands of kilometres across some heavy snow to some eastern europe. Of the hills here. So, walkers, take note of that. It is going to be a blustery day. Alexander has these are some of the wind gusts and the winds will get stronger been again later in the day, monitoring the dnipro down towards the south west of england, in particular, in ukraine for as another batch of wet weather starts to move in. Yea rs. And as for those temperatures, most of us in single figures, many of us just into mid single figures. Now, lets just run on through saturday night and follow he is showing us what is this area of wet weather known as feeding north across more looming. It is when too many of england and wales. Could well be seeing some hill snow nutrients get in the out of that through wales, water, parts of northern england, triggering a rapid, lurid green even into the midlands, growth of to relatively low hills algae. At that. Northern ireland and scotland still seeing some snow falling in some of the hills here. Blooming. It looks a bit colder across Northern Britain to start off on sunday morning. Icy in places. And again, dont be surprised if its fairly wintry on fairly modest hills through parts of wales, northern england, perhaps the midlands, as we start off on sunday morning. But then on sunday, there is a little bit of a gap between weather systems where more outside the cities, the run off of us will be dry and get to see from the sunshine before this comes fertilisers used in farming is also in later in the day. Still a bit of uncertainty a big part of about timing. But, yes, it does look quieter the problem. As is for a time on sunday, with some sunshine. Untreated perhaps a bit more widespread waste. Than it is during saturday. Still, a few of these showers delivering snow to the hills of scotland, mind of course, if fertilisers and waste you. Is dumped in the and then as we go on through rivers, it means the afternoon, its across parts of southern england and wales well pollution when those rivers then flow into the start to see this next system moving in with outbreaks of showery rain, just putting the wind black sea. Three gusts on again. Maybe not as windy for some of us rivers provide the bulk of the black but the winds really strengthening seas down towards others and South West England again. Later today, eventually because it pollution. Gusts around 60 mph. Similar temperatures. The it is going to be chilly. Then again, occasionally, dnipro, we will find ourselves in the the sunshine. Dnista and the longest of them all, so to sum up the weekend then, the danube. There will be sunshine occasionally. It is going to be windy. Back in it will be wet at times. And some of us will see some august, the snow, and maybe notjust pollution reached the headlines in on the high ukraine. The water near hills. Odessa was turned into a nutrient rich pea soup. Anything that registered s at turned green. Swim in it. These women work for odessas sanitation department, and test the black sea every monday. This year they advise holidaymakers not to swim through most of the peak month of august. Not that it put many people off. You are not worried the water is not clea n . You are not worried the water is not clean . No. And when the Authorities Say the water is dirtied, dont swim, do you stop . Are you not worried that this water is polluted and might make you sick . 1000 kilometres away, on another very different beach. One of the black seas most visible problems is piling up. This is butuni in georgia, a holiday burnt out on the seas far eastern edge. It has grown exponentially in the last ten years. Batumi. But batumi has a dirty, smelly secret. Just one kilometre from its tourist beaches. So this is the main rubbish dump here in batumi. Obviously it is pretty disgusting. You can see, it is full of animals scavenging of the rubbish, people as well. The big issue for here is that it is only about 300, 400 metres from this rubbish dump to the black sea itself. And there is a waterway which basically leads all the way down there. Taking the rubbish with it. Having scrambled down onto the beach, we find some locals. He has caught a fish are you going to eat them . Are you not worried that there isa them . Are you not worried that there is a rubbish dumpjust them . Are you not worried that there is a rubbish dump just up the road . And this water might have come from there . A few metres away on the beach, rubbish from the dump is being washed up. So there is rubbish all along the speech, butjust to give you a sense of part of it, what it is made up of, there is lots welcome to bbc news, im james reynolds. Of plastic bottles everywhere. Our top stories borisjohnson is celebrating the biggest conservative victory that is in over 30 years. He now leads a government pa rt plastic bottles everywhere. That is part of with a majority a lightbulb. Of 80 an inhaler. Seats in some sort of the commons. Plastic brush, more thank you for the trust you medicine bottles, that looks like. Have placed in us and in and over here, lots and lots more plastic bottles. A me, and we will work round the clock to repay your trust, margarine container, a and to deliver on your priorities with a parliament that shoe. Really works for depressing and grim to see it like you. This. Because this isjust a very different story depressing and grim to see it like for labour as Jeremy Corbyn this. Because this is just a leads his party to its worst depressing and grim to see it like this. Because this isjust a little snapshot here, it goes all the way election performance on in since the 1930s. Snapshot here, it goes all the way onina snapshot here, it goes all the way on in a pretty similar rate he says he will stand of it. Down but not yet. Paul Waste Management and rubbish dump along rivers have turned the the responsible thing to do is not black sea into to walk away from the whole thing europes most and i wont do that. Polluted. Paul waste i will stay here until there has management. The latest survey shows a been somebody elected to succeed me and then i will step concentration of litter in the sea down at that point. Almost twice as high as in mrchairman, there are the mediterranean. 23 ayes and 17 noes. The article is agreed to. In other news one step closer to impeaching the president . A committee in the Us Congress Approves two charges against poor. Donald trump. Foryears un investigators accuse chile of torture, ill treatment and sexual there was very little detailed violence against protesters. Information about the state of the black sea. That is and the search resumes for two remaining bodies now changing, and following the volcanic eruption in we have joined black sea. That is now changing, and we havejoined a Research Black sea. That is now changing, and new zealand. We have joined a Research Vessel funded by the European Union. Packed full of scientists, its job funded by the European Union. Packed full of scientists, itsjob is funded by the European Union. Packed full of scientists, its job is to travel right across the black sea, providing the data to better inform government decisions. Long before humans began ruining the black sea, it had, thanks to its geography, a unique make up. 8996 of the total body of the black sea, it is this beautiful, blue water with jumping dolphins here and there, but it is Hydrogen Sulphide. Toxic, smelly chemical. So when you go down, 100, 150 metres under the surface, forget life, you know. Interior is there. What is worrying time scientists is that Climate Change might lead to a shift in the delicate balance between the two layers. One of the many unknowns about the black sea is how Climate Change and rising sea temperatures will affect the oxygenated layer at the top, and the Hydrogen Sulphide below that. This device here, these tanks will take samples of water at different depths, and the senses beneath here are designed to measure the temperature, the salinity and the oxygen content of the water. That allows scientists to say at what point in the water the oxygenated layer and and the Hydrogen Sulphide layer, that dead zone, begins. As the device is lowered it sends back its readings. Oxygen minimum on this location, about 88 metres. So the Hydrogen Sulphide layer started 88 metres. Yeah. About 90 metres, yeah. What would be the impact for the black sea if the Hydrogen Sulphide layer rose up . It would kill the entire black sea, people would not be swimming in it, fish would not living in it, no plant would be growing at the bottom of the sea. The moment the data suggests that the moment the data suggests that the oxygenated layer that supports life is getting squeezed. But there is not enough evidence yet to make firm conclusions. So the water from the different depths is now being removed, and taken away. It will be analysed and look at very closely for traces of plastics, pollutants, organic matter. All helping the scientists here to get a better idea of how healthy or unhealthy that pa rt of how healthy or unhealthy that part of the black sea is. The same painstaking process is repeated at 12 different sampling sites over the course of seven days. But to get an idea of what is going on on the seabed. You need a different piece of kit. We are now at one of the deepest parts of the black sea, and if you want to find out what is on the bottom here, you need to use a tool like this. This is called a multi corer, the way it works is it is sent down over the side, and then it will hit the bottom and sediment from the bottom will be gathered up in those plastic tubes there and brought back up to the surface. The middle of the black sea is more than two kilometres deep, so it takes more than half an hour for it to reach the ocean floor. Ok, so it has 110w reach the ocean floor. Ok, so it has now hit the bottom. The reading is about 2200. The muddy sludge gathered is winched back up to the boat. This sample has come right from the very bottom of the black sea. The part where there is no oxygen, the Hydrogen Sulphide layer. 0h, oxygen, the Hydrogen Sulphide layer. Oh, the smell. You think it is chanel . Black sea chanel. It is more like rotten eggs. Samples taken from the bottom at sites hundreds of kilometres from the shore have shown the extent of the black seas contamination. Micro plastics are tiny pieces of plastic that can be swallowed by marine creatures and thus get into the food chain. The study of micro plastics is relatively new so it is not clear yet what impact ingesting them will have on our health. To get good samples of the surface seawater, i leave the main Research Vessel with peter, a slovakian scientist. Peter tells me he has been finding tiny traces of everyday items in the middle of the sea. Stimulants like caffeine and illicit drugs, painkillers, stuff like i be proven and then there are compounds coming from personal care product, from shampoo and dish water detergents. That sounds horrifying. Should we worry about this . The biggest threat is from pharmaceuticals, especially from antibiotics. The problem is the bacteria which are also here can become resistant against these antibiotics and that is the biggest problem. And that is because if there are antibiotics in the black sea that means the back area will develop here that will resist the antibiotics and mean that, ultimately, the medicine no longer works. This is now a real problem. People are dying because of it. Because the bacteria is resistant . Yes. Of course. After a week at sea we left the ship, having received a bleak lesson in just how badly humans have damaged the black sea. Faced with the piles of rubbish and the contamination, it would be easy to write off the black sea as beyond help. Plastic bottle, plastic bottle. Indeed, if we made this film in the 1990s we would probably have stop here. But thanks to a concerted international effort, this is not the end. This is the river danube. It is one of europes longest and most polluted rivers. It stretches its way almost 3000 kilometres across South Eastern Europe before emptying into the black sea. It is also a source of hope because over the last 20 years, the danube has been the subject of a massive cleanup operation. And it appears to be working. So this is basically a river of human food. Yes. If you flush the toilet in budapest in hungary, there is a good chanceit budapest in hungary, there is a good chance it will end up here. We do not recommend swimming in it. Completed nine years ago, this is pa rt completed nine years ago, this is part of a Water Treatment revolution along the danube. Backed by williams of euros of European Union money. Before this plant was built around half of the produced wastewater was going directly into the danube. Raw sewerage. Going directly into the danube. Raw sewerage. And after we had this one, after 2010, almost 95, 90 6 of the sewerage after 2010, almost 95, 90 6 of the sewerage is treated, biologically treated and going like this, clean, to the danube. Eu membership for countries like hungary that the danube flows through has meant cash for Treatment Plants and stricter rules on what industry and agriculture can put in the river. Those in charge of monitoring sayyid has made a real difference. The eu provides a framework where the combination of the regulatory frame and the transfer of the money that finances support to the new member state was one of the key factors of the improving of the situation on the improving of the situation on the danube. So this is a positive story. You are sure that the danube and, by connection, the black sea are now on their way back and the worst is over . We can be happy and satisfied with what we did in terms of reduction of pollution coming from one big river, the danube, because we do not know much about the other rivers. But definitely over the last 15 years we have witnessed improvement. The danube story is a Success Story of the countries transforming themselves in an better Environmental Management and reaching a better environmental situation. In search of those signs of recovery, we headed off into the shallow pa rt of recovery, we headed off into the shallow part of the black sea, near the mouth of the danube. One of the best indicators as to whether things are Getting Better is the presence of this red seaweed. Large seaweed fields were once common in this part of the black sea but as the Water Quality deteriorated, the seaweed fields shrunk dramatically. Alexandra is heading 40 metres down to the bottom of the black sea to look for signs that the phyllophora is indeed on its way back. His underwater camera shows lots of jellyfish. They are an indicator of poor Water Quality and a signed there are not many predators that may eat them. If there is lots of seaweed, then there is food and shelter for small seaweed, then there is food and shelterfor small marine seaweed, then there is food and shelter for small marine creatures as well. Back on the surface, alexander gives his verdict. Their