The governor of Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Władysław Ortyl, invited the European Commission in the plenary of the Committee of the Regions (CoR) to support the initiative regarding the elaboration of macroregional strategy for the Carpathian region. This would be the second strategy for the mountainous area of Europe (next to the Alpine Strategy).
Ortyl is the author of the report named “Macro-regional strategy for the Carpathian region”, an opinion that passed in the plenary of the Committee of the Regions on December 4, 2019.
The opinion followed the result of a continuous dialogue and excellent collaboration within the Carpathian Initiative Group at the CoR. The opinion is mainly the fruit of negtiations between the delegations of Poland and Romania. In this case, Adrian Teban, the mayor of the Transylvanian city of Cugir advised by 2Celsius, was the only one that brought significant amendments that focused especially on the ecological and cultural heritage of the Carpathian area.
The tool of macro-regional strategies allows for the more efficient use of a financial resource available in terms of the European Territorial Cooperation objective, the creation of a co-financing and conditional system for the Carpathian countries; thus access to European sources of funding is augmented.
By placing the Carpathian matter at the center of European policies, it is necessary to draw up strategic documents. European Commission can draw attention to the problems in this area and could forward the unique sustaianable economic possibilities, as yet unexploited.
At the same time, the Carpathian region is a geopolitical area of great importance, at the intersecting areas of interests of political and economic nature of Western and Eastern Europe. Following the enlargement of the EU in 2004 and 2007, an even larger region is required, as the Eastern border of the EU has been pushed further east, underlined Ortyl.
The whole area of the Carpathian Mountains, Teban believes, must play an active role and make a major contribution to the climate policy in order to implement EU’s commitments to be made under Paris Agreement. In this context, the Committee emphasizes the need for large conservation in the Carpathians, it enhances their significant role in reducing carbon dioxide emissions and conserving biodiversity.
The opinion was adopted by a large majority.
Raul Cazan
Be First to Comment