The project is unique not only in Croatia, but in Europe as well.
Ecological Map of the City of Zagreb - a project aimed at improving health by continuous monitoring of environmental indicators in the city was presented at the City Assembly yesterday, April 25.
The City of Zagreb has been carrying out environmental tests and has been systematically monitoring the environmental indicator for years, and city offices have been using these data in their operations. The main goal of the Ecological Map of the city of Zagreb project is to unify the existing data on the state of the environment, e.g. data on the degree of air, soil and water pollution, and to collect the meteorological and biological indicators in order to ensure timely decisions on renovations or further development of the city in accordance with the principles of sustainable development.
Mayor Bandić pointed out that the Ecological Map of the City of Zagreb project gathers top experts. In addition to the City of Zagreb and the initiator of the project - Andrija Štampar Teaching Institute of Public Health, project partners include the Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health and the Meteorological and Hydrological Service, and the project’s collaborators are the Faculty of Agriculture and the Croatian Agency for the environment and nature.
“The map has a clear goal - detection and prevention of environmental pollution and protecting the health of our citizens. If, for instance, the CO2 in a specific part of the city reaches a certain level, we will get notified and we will be able to plan further development according to these data,” Mayor Bandić said.
Dr. Zvonimir Šostar, director of the Andrija Štampar Teaching Institute of Public Health said that experts from city services will benefit from the project, but also citizens, who will be able to access information quickly.
“The Ecological Map of the City of Zagreb will enable the identification of potentially significant factors from the environment in order to respond to potential new problems. Analyses of collected data allow a more effective construction planning, the possibility of reducing pollution, obtaining current information in the event of certain incidents and providing timely information to citizens about possible health risks,” Dr.Šostar added.
He added that this project is unique not only in Croatia, but in Europe as well.