“Greener and smarter cities not only promote sustainable lifestyles, but also provide numerous opportunities for the business. That is why cities are at the heart of our journey towards zero pollution,” said Minister of Environment and Water Petar Dimitrov today at the opening of the “Green cities are great” conference, organized by the British-Bulgarian Business Association.

Cities produce about 75% of global GDP, while contributing to 70% of global carbon emissions. “People are increasingly thinking about the quality of the environment as a key factor for well-being, and the quality of life is impaired when the urban environment is critically stressed,” noted Minister Dimitrov. He added that this is why sustainable development strategies must be implemented in cities, including with the broad participation of citizens. According to him, environmental problems related to air pollution, noise, climate zoning and illegal construction must be solved with smart innovative solutions.

Cities have opportunities to increase their natural capital through investments in the protection, restoration and expansion of green infrastructure in urban and suburban areas. Nature-friendly solutions, such as green corridors, greening of buildings and implementation of green urban infrastructure, will improve the quality of life and make urban areas more resilient to climate disasters, such as floods and heat waves.

To improve the quality of air, the Ministry of Environment and Water continues to actively support investments in projects in cities - the Environment Program 2021-2027 provides over 700 million BGN. The measures that are financed are: supply of environmentally friendly vehicles for urban transport, introduction of low-emission zones, tackling secondary dusting and green infrastructure in urban environments; replacement of air-polluting heating appliances with environmentally friendly ones. To promote resource efficiency and the circular economy through sustainable waste management, the planned investments amount to 611.5 million BGN and are aimed at measures related to waste management at the municipal level.

“Another key component that will have an impact on the urban environment is related to the requirements of the new Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, which entered into force in May,” said Minister Petar Dimitrov. Within the EU, buildings account for about 40% of energy consumption and 35% of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions. One of the goals is for newly constructed buildings to be zero-emission. All new residential and non-residential buildings must be zero-emission from fossil fuels – from 1 January 2028 for publicly owned buildings, and from 1 January 2030 for all other new buildings.

According to Minister Dimitrov, achieving these goals requires funding to cover the initial investment costs. Therefore, in the period until 2030 EU Member States will be provided with over 100 billion Euro in European funding to support renovation of buildings, and the funds come from several sources, including cohesion policy funds, InvestEU, and others.