There are no borders when it comes to climate change. It affects regions, countries, states and continents across the board, and therefore in the fight against climate change, it is necessary for countries to cooperate.
In the CLIMADAM project, together with the Ukrainians, we focus primarily on the neighboring Transcarpathian region. The project deals with three activities, aiming to mitigate the effects of climate change on the environment and the population that lives in it.
With the participation of experts and representatives of municipalities, the main topic of the two-day conference on 20-21 July 2023 in Uzhgorod was transport and adaptation to climate change. The goal was the presentation of the achieved results of the project, which was also attended by the project manager representing the donor – EHP grants.
Transport
Transport is one of the main sources of greenhouse gas emissions responsible for global warming. The most emissions are produced by road transport, especially cars powered by fossil fuels. Therefore, supporting public transport is one of the most effective ways to reduce the negative impact of transport on the climate.
Matúš Korfant, IDS East. Integrated transport model and its use in the region of eastern Slovakia.
The developed transport model for the Košice region serves as an inspiration for the city of Uzhhorod. One of the points of the conference was the practical use of the transport model of eastern Slovakia at the specialized workplace of IDS Východ for the improvement of sustainable mobility in regions and cities. Another topic was the possibility of cooperation between regional bus transport services in Ukraine and Slovakia, which would be significantly improved, especially by enabling pedestrian and bicycle crossing through the Vyšné Nemecké border crossing.
The topic of discussion was also support for the construction of the D1 highway to Ukraine, when a request was made to strengthen international rail transport from Košice to Mukachevo. The participants of the event could also listen to the results of processing the traffic model of the city of Uzhhorod and its surroundings.
Climate change
The essence of adaptation to climate change is adaptation to the new conditions that the climate crisis brings. At the conference, the climate change adaptation strategy for the Transcarpathian region was presented, where the methodology for the creation of AS Košice Region was used for its processing. One of the problems they face in the processing and implementation of AS is the inconsistency of methodologies, competences and procedures at the local, regional and national levels. We presented the water retention measures on the Roňava River, which were created as part of the project’s outputs. At the conference, we also addressed the possibilities of how to preserve water resources in Transcarpathia.
Nataliya Kablak, Institute for the Development of the Carpathian Region.
Martin Pukančík, GIS Reg. Data visualization of the Adaptation Strategy in the Košice Region
The conference was also significant in that the project partners met physically for the first time in Uzhgorod. During two active days, various connections were made on the professional side, but also on the human side. Despite the difficult situation that Ukraine is facing since February 2022, the partners work honestly on project activities, and we appreciate their efforts to fulfill project activities all the more.
Slovak delegation with Natalia Kablak (left)
