Exhibition on air quality monitoring in BiH through history opens in Sarajevo
A special photographic exhibition on air quality monitoring in Bosnia and Herzegovina opened in Sarajevo on 17 August, as part the EnviroDay, event dedicated to environmental protection that is held a...
A special photographic exhibition on air quality monitoring in Bosnia and Herzegovina opened in Sarajevo on 17 August, as part the EnviroDay, event dedicated to environmental protection that is held annually during the Sarajevo Film Festival.
The exhibition was hosted by the United Nations Environment Programme, EU Delegation and EUSR in BiH, EU Info Centre, Regional Education and Information Centre for Sustainable Development in South-East Europe, Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction and Environmental Protection of the Sarajevo Canton and the Sarajevo Film Festival.
The 2016 EnviroDay was organised to inform and educate citizens on taking effective measures to improve air quality by their individual actions aimed at reducing air pollutants.
Opening the exhibition, Deputy Head of the Delegation of the European Union to BiH Dr. Renzo Daviddi commended the joint efforts to organise a public environment event at the regional festival of this kind. “It is useful to have such an event related to important issues of environment protection hosted at the film festival in order to attract more attention of the public and invite them to get more involved in policy and decision-making processes concerning environment protection in the country. I hope that this will initiate a series of other environment-related discussions on a regular basis in the future”, Dr Daviddi noted.
Pier Carlo Sandei, United Nations Environment Programme Officer, recalled the heavy air pollution in Sarajevo last year as well as the importance of addressing the issue of air pollution.
“Last winter’s air pollution in Sarajevo clearly indicates that the air pollution topic is discussed only when it becomes too late, when the winter comes and the heating season begins. Today’s discussion on the issue of air pollution is necessary and provocative, and it leads to raising awareness on this issue”, Sandei said.
He also noted the last Progress Report in which the European Commission included the recommendations in terms of air pollution monitoring mechanisms. “The European Commission indicated the necessity of improving the state of affairs of the BiH environment as well developing the air pollution monitoring mechanisms”, Sandei concluded.
Elmedin Konaković, Prime Minister of the Sarajevo Canton informed about several measures taken to tackle air pollution issues in Sarajevo. “The exhibition displays only one aspect of the actions taken by the Sarajevo Canton in the course of the past few decades, and the strictest regulations on exhaust gasses monitoring and prohibitions have been applied in Sarajevo. I believe that the issue of air pollution is likely to be solved, and the local authorities have been actively addressing this issue by reducing gas prices in the Canton for the fourth time this year”, Konaković stated.
The exhibition will be open in the premises of the EU Info Centre, (address: Skenderija 3a, Sarajevo) until 9th September, on working days from 09:30 to 17:30 hrs.
