Slovenia

Activities from Slovenia

Facebook Group chat

As we were trying to find the best way to communicate between ourselves (all 6 participants), we decided to use the Facebook Messenger and created our own Facebook Group chat (https://www.facebook.com/messages/t/1786766151359187), eventhough we first started with mails, but we figured out it was too slow and that is why we rather used Messenger. We were discussing all things we wanted to discuss about the program. The group chat enabled as to arrange anything that we wanted for our meetings and what we needed to do about the SOESOS project. We are all very active also in the Facebook group page of the SOESOS project, created by the Cyprus team.

Participation in Logo Contest

Further on, we took part in the logo contest and each of our member created a logo that was sent to the competition. Participants created 7 logos and as we could not decide which logo to send to the competition we chose 3 (as you can see below on the pictures) and asked Mr. Nikolas Nikolaou as the Project Manager to decide which 2 he will take to the competition.

When the logo competition begun we voted for our favorite logos from other participating countries on the Facebook group chat and send our votes to Mr. Nikolaou.

Reasearch about the environmental problems in Slovenia

From May onwards, we have conducted a research about the environmental problems and issues in our country, Slovenia. Mainly we focused on our region and our hometown Novo mesto. We found out that there are a lot of issues, mainly referred to accumulation of rubbish, wild waste dumps, the problem of recycling, floods, glaciers melt, climate change (too hot or too cold, not autumn and spring anymore, greenhouse gas emissions) etc. In Slovenia today we have poisoned water resources, reduced soil fertility, degraded aquatic and swamp ecosystems and endangered numerous plant and animal species. Among the fundamental environmental problems in Slovenia, destruction and soil erosion, poisoning of running water and groundwater, threatening ecosystems and loss of biodiversity could be added. The listed environmental problems have a strong enough common denominator! This is a chemical pollution that has two main sources: industry and agriculture. The industry pours its hazardous landfill waste, with sewage of running water, with emissions air; agriculture, with its toxic waste, poisons soil and groundwater. The main culprit for the environmental problems are the Slovenian agriculture with pesticides and chemical poisons, and the Slovenian chemical pollution industry. Another problem on the national level is sea pollution.

Visit to Zalog, Novo mesto, Slovenia, where a major ecologic disaster happened in 2017, July 20th:

We decided to take a visit to Zalog, Novo mesto, where, last year (2017), the firefighters succeeded to put down another fire at the Ecosystems in Zalog at Novo mesto's waste disposal facility (especially plastic waste). A big fire broke out at about 16 o'clock in the waste sorting department in the branch of the Celje company for the collection and processing of waste Ecosystems. Due to smoke, about ten firefighters were poisoned and evacuated by 38 inhabitants. This was already the fifth fire in this company over the last four years. And for the fact that the plant is an ecological bomb, the locals have been warning for a decade. This is basically a landfill in the middle of the settlement in Dolenjska. The residents of Zalog are convinced that the wood chip production plant and the waste processing plant do not function according to the rules. In the facility where waste processing is carried out, it is basically a dump. Too many facilities get Environmental permits with no special conditions or requests. This is a big ecological problem in our region, that is why we selected it as a good example of environmental issues. However, due to the fact, we could not manage to go together as a group, we went seperately, but we concluded the visit with a debate on this topic at the DRPD’s premises all togehter.

We have also made a tour visit around our hometown Novo Mesto, and discussed about water and air pollution. Our team has invited various colleagues to join us in debating environmental issues.

Regarding the industry and its factories, we found out, that company Krka is organizing traditional meetings with the people living in the immediate vicinity of the factory complex every year. They presented their activities and investment plans, especially those related to environmental protection. As they say, Krka is aware that its activities affect people, the local community and the natural environment, and they constantly strive to reduce the environmental impact they want to keep clean and healthy.

The second major factory in Novo mesto, Revoz, is the only factory for the production of cars in Slovenia. Considering that its production activity is almost in the center of Novo mesto, environmental concern is one of the most important guidelines for it. Reducing the impact on air quality is one of the most important areas where Revoz, in the past, tried to reduce the amount of volatile organic substances (VOCs), as much as possible, through various ongoing campaigns.

But in Novo mesto and Slovenia more broader, we also have many good practices already established, such as the Recycling stores (Reciklarna), EcoSchools, Akcija očistimo Slovenijo (Action let's clean Slovenia), cleaning caves, new machines for recycling, changing lamps for economic ones, reconstruction of roads, building antinoisy fances, monitoring rivers (especially river Krka), establishing a new water treatement regime etc. To achieve compliance with PM10 limit values many municipalities, also Novo mesto, have come up with the Plans for ambient air quality. Plans are mainly aimed at reducing emissions due to the heating of buildings and the discharges of road motor traffic. The assessment of health effects shows that, with an average halving of airborne particles in these areas, the expected life expectancy of the population would be extended by half to one year. A quarter of diseases and deaths are associated with the environment. The task of environmental policy in Slovenia is to protect the environment, which also includes nature conservation and water protection. Environmental protection is not only implemented through environmental policy measures, but other policies are also influenced by the state of the environment, such as industrial, transport, energy, agriculture, education policy etc. Slovenia is now prepraing the National Environment protection program 2030.

Some solution we have come up with during our meetings and all the visits, lectures and researches done are: unscrupulous use of natural resources; in the water protection areas of Slovenia, we have to introduce an extremely strict farming regime, therefore it is necessary to adopt and consistently implement the regulations that will regulate this area. The regulations must also contain a list of pesticides authorized for use in water-supply areas. I bet that the list will contain at least ten potentially carcinogenic pesticides etc.

First of all, it is definitely necessary to monitor the state of our waters and soil, ie to establish a national monitoring system, and at the same time to take a series of measures to ensure chemical safety in Slovenia. In short, a national chemical safety program is needed, based on which we will eliminate the most dangerous substances from the use and minimize the use of poisons in our environment.; This includes biological tests based on observation of changes in animal behavior or plant status.; water management; developing national, regional and local policies for sustainable environment; we are all aware that we need to work together on such important topics as environmental protection (all the institutions, schools, municipalities, citizens, national agencies etc.). In order to improve air quality, it is necessary to connect science, politics and the public (Nataša Kovač, Environmental Agency of the Republic of Slovenia). The fact is that we need a structured shift to the green economy, green consumption and sustainable patterns of behavior.

In Novo mesto, we encourage walking and cycling throughout the year. The Municipality has established bicycle rental system in Novo mesto (GO NM) and is organizing many different events, such as the “Bycicle day”, walking tour etc. For the first year's high activity to promote sustainable mobility, the Grm Primary School was provided by the “Pešbus” initiative and with the support of the Municipality and in cooperation with the Association for developing voluntary work Novo mesto (DRPDNM). Our Organization DRPDNM is every year together with the Municipality of Novo mesto organizing the so-called »Pešbus« event, which is usually going on throughout the school year, and this is the event where kids go to school walking by foot in organized groups led by teachers, family, friends or DRPDNM' s volunteers. The event itself helps to promote healthy living, solidarity, traffic safety, connecting community and one of the most important things, saving and taking care of the environment. By »Pešbus« there are less routes to take by car and less harmful releases (gasses) to the environment, and therefore the whole event is more environmentally friendly. DRPDNM is also organizing various events through which it is promoting the safety of our environment, such as different workshops, debates and round-tables (as you can see below in the pictures), where our group also participated. Furthermore, we also have traditional Cleansing campaigns, mainly around Earth's day, initiatives of Ecologists without borders - Ekologi brez meja etc.

During 2013 and 2014 we were partners to the project COHEIRS – Civilian Observers for Health and the Environment: Civic Observers for Health and Environment: Initiative for Responsibility and Sustainability, we conducted workhsops on the topic of polluted urban atmosphere and consequently negative impacts on the health of the city's residents.

Meeting and discussion about environmental problems in Slovenia and possible solutions

As you can see, we had many meetings, where we included also other local youngsters and people from different companies, associations and institutes tackling environmental themes, so we had a bigger group each time to discuss different things about environment in our local community and broader. But on our last meeting on August 23rd 2018 in our premises of the DRPDNM organisation before the SOESOS youth exchange in Cyprus, there were only six of us – the original SOESOS Slovenia team. We decided about publishing posters we have done in previous meetings and each participant cooperated with other group members so to create 4 posters that will show environmental problems in our Community, region and country in order to make a report about these problems, possible solutions and a presentation which we will bring to the youth exchange at the end of August 2018. Before coming to Cyprus, we will post our report and posters in the Facebook group page of the SOESOS project. We have also planned how we will do the Slovenian intercultural night in Cyprus, divided things to do and prepare, what each of us will bring to the exchange etc.

We are looking forward to the youth exchange and we hope we will make some great ideas about the future and realization of the SOESOS project and about saving our environment.

Vanesa, Šejna, Jan, Feliks, Sergej and Timotej, team Slovenia :)

Resources:

https://www.bodieko.si/ekoloski-problemi-slovenskega-okolja

http://www.nevladnik.info/si/novice/?id=9330

https://www.dnevnik.si/1042770156/slovenija/bruselj-proti-sloveniji-sprozil-postopek-pred-sodiscem-eu-zaradi-nezakonitih-odlagalisc

https://www.ekoper.si/aktualno/ekoloska-katastrofa-na-morju-drzava-pa-nic/

https://www.delo.si/novice/kronika/v-zalogu-pri-novem-mestu-gori.html

https://www.24ur.com/novice/crna-kronika/foto-v-zalogu-pri-novem-mestu-izbruhnil-velik-pozar.html

https://www.novomesto.si/dogajanje/novice/2018062114235993/na_novomeskem_pesbusu_prek_240_potnikov_in_soferjev/

https://www.novomesto.si/mma/-/20170901140693/

https://www.novomesto.si/mma/-/201709081415410003/

http://www.mojzrak.si/onesnazena-obmocja/