The project, with a budget of SEK 9 million aims to contribute to capacity building to the Kosovo Environmental Protection Agency (KEPA) and its Ministry of Economy and Environment through cooperation and mutual learning between the three institutions, the Swedish EPA, the County Administrative Board of Dalarna and KEPA.
Through close cooperation, the Swedish EPA and CAB will strengthen KEPA's ability to implement EU environmental legislation. The thematic priorities within the project are water, climate and air pollution. The project will prepare Kosovo to make data from the thematic areas available through environmental information systems in accordance with the guidelines of EU Chapter 27 with the long-term goal of a future EU accession.
The project will also include support for colleagues in Kosovo in implementing measures, policies, plans and procedures using analytical tools. Communication will permeate the project as a whole which will also have an inherent flexibility so that the content can be adapted to the necessary reprioritisations during the activity period 2021–2023.
Background
Kosovo is plagued by major environmental problems, of which air pollution is one of the biggest health risk factors. These contribute to increased mortality in heart and lung diseases as well as lung cancer. During the winter months, air pollutants reach high levels of PM10 and PM2.5. In part, the pollutants come from sources such as coal, which is also an important energy source in the country. Another major environmental problem is illegal deforestation where the wood is used for heating. The environmental challenges are also about sewage treatment and waste management where the country has many illegal landfills. Most of the rivers are polluted by mining waste, municipal landfills and sewage from the larger cities. Only 8 percent of the wastewater from the cities is connected to municipal sewers and follows current standards. Wastewater treatment in rural areas does not exist at all.
In 2017, the Kosovo Environmental Protection Agency, KEPA expressed interest in collaborating with the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency to supplement the Sida-funded Kosovo Environmental Program (KEP). A first meeting took place in February 2018 at which KEPA and the Swedish EPA came to focus on the parts within KEP that dealt with environmental information, water and regional cooperation. The Swedish EPA received a grant from Sida to develop a project proposal. This was done together with the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management and later through the County Administrative Board in Dalarna and above all with KEPA through, among other things, three workshops and a final seminar in January 2020.
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