
Preparing to survive earthquakes
Cross-border cooperation programmes work to strengthen a clean environment through different types of actions, from improving the quality of water to upgrading waste management facilities, from reducing marine litter to protecting endangered species.
Preparing to survive earthquakes
How satellite images can help save water ecosystems
Eyes on the youth! On 7 and 8 November the “Interreg Youth Road Show” headed to the Southeast Mediterranean, bringing around 30 representatives of the European Commission and the European Parliament to meet the youth of Thessaloniki and Serres (Greece). Four Interreg programmes took a chance to showcase their youth project in vocational training, employability, entrepreneurship, and environmental education. The trip’s itinerary included – for the first time! – an ENI CBC project “ZeroWasteBSB”. Its partners from Turkey, Bulgaria, Ukraine and Greece focus on zero waste practices and awareness-raising activities to minimize marine litter in the Black Sea Basin. The Greek partner – ANTIGONE – carried out a cycle of educational activities in several schools in Thessaloniki, and during the “Interreg Youth Road Show” we were able to appreciate the results of their work with youth.
Controlled burning can reduce huge volumes of garbage into – literally – a handful of ashes. Waste combustion is often preferred as an alternative to waste landfilling. But what is most important, it allows to recover energy from the burning process – either in the form of electricity and/or heat – that can further be used in homes and businesses. The EnyMSW project has worked on the development of this idea for the border regions of Romania, Slovakia and Ukraine.
“Here my discoveries on oil spills”
Traditional water treatment systems are usually costly and sometimes not very safe for the environment: they use potentially toxic elements such as chlorine, or expensive techniques like ultra-violet light. The OneDrop project is developing a new water purification system based on a key element that is cheaper and safer: sodium ferrate. This is a very active oxidizing agent, capable of cleaning huge amounts of water even if injected in very low quantity. In addition, the project is making this purification plant mobile, potentially able to reach everywhere. The OneDrop project – implemented in the framework of the South-East Finland Russia CBC programme – is already catching media attention: it promises to be a real revolution.
Public buildings cut energy bills: new parameters in 3D models
Did you know that cattle manure is not the same as organic fertilizer? To become a nutrient substance for plants, it must be correctly processed, stored and spread. Otherwise, it may negatively impact the environment – air, soil and water. Excessive amounts of manure produced by large-scale livestock farms in the Leningrad region (Russia) bear environmental risks for the eco-systems in the Baltic Sea region. The ECOAGRAS project introduces best available technologies for handling organic cattle waste, with the aim to reduce environmental impact while securing the economic activity.
Lake Peipsi is a unique water body. It is the biggest transboundary lake in Europe shared by Estonia and Russia. For more than a decade this natural resource has been a focal point for any cross-border initiative between the two countries. Can one single CBC project improve lake water quality, boost local businesses, empower neighbouring communities and even set milestones for re-establishing water connections between two countries? Yes, it can! Meet the project “Common Peipsi” co-funded by Estonia-Russia CBC programme.
Thousands of citizens monitoring dolphins
Riversides cleaned, with lighting system, bins, benches installed, and even a place to sunbathe. “When a place is attractive, it becomes like glue, it sticks you to the territory and that is what we want to do, attract visitors and glue them to our cities”. Sticky Urban Areas is the name and the main idea behind the project funded by Latvia-Russia CBC programme, with the objective to transform natural resources into attractive areas for inhabitants and visitors. Two municipal administrations – Rēzekne City Council in Latvia (LV) and Ostrov District Administration in Russia (RU) – are very concerned about the situation in their cities. Rēzekne is far away from the capital, and not being a seaside city does not help; and Ostrov – located in the eastern part of a huge country like Russia – is often forgotten when it comes to hauling financial resources and attracting businesses. Yet, both places have immense potential, and an untapped opportunity for businesses to thrive and to get tourists moving: their natural resources, especially, their rivers.