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VITEBSK, 20 September (BelTA) – Polotsk is expected to sign the declaration on joining the Covenant of Mayors in Friedrichshafen on 27 September, Polotsk Mayor Alexander Poznyak told BelTA. Thus, Polotsk will be the first Belarusian city to make commitments to the implementation of the EU 20-20-20 targets. The major goal of the strategy is to curb CO2 emissions by at least 20% by 2020. “By joining the Covenant of Mayors Polotsk will be given access to European innovation energy-saving technologies, be able to expand its sci-tech potential and establish partnership with other Covenant of Mayors member states,” Alexander Poznyak said. The development and implementation of the sustainable energy action plan is an obligatory condition for Polotsk as part of the project “Sustainable Urban Energy in the Region of the European Neighborhood Partnership Instrument – towards the Covenant of Mayors”. Experts from the Spanish company Bionet and the Institute of Energy of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus (NASB) worked on the plan. Having analyzed the current energy consumption, energy conservation and results of the energy audits of 10 facilities in Polotsk carried out by the NASB Institute of Energy, Spanish specialists from Bionet offered the city a plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20% by 2020 through measures aimed at reducing consumption and promoting the use of renewable energy in the city. In particular, they suggest energy-saving measures for public and residential buildings, the system of urban lighting, urban transport and private motor vehicles, and utilities companies. The experts also suggested wider use of local fuels and renewable energy for electricity generation. According to Alexander Poznyak, the pilot project of the sustainable energy development plan will be energy-saving lighting of the Francysk Skorina Avenue. Later there will be installed energy-saving traffic lights in the city. Development of alternative sources of energy will be another key area in the city’s plan. The EU project “SURE: Sustainable Urban Energy in the Region of the European Neighborhood Partnership Instrument – towards the Covenant of Mayors” is a part of the EU program “CIUDAD: Cooperation in Urban Development and Dialogue”. The budget of the 2.5-year project is nearly ?790,000. The new initiative will contribute to sustainable energy development of Polotsk and Sale (Morocco) with their further joining of the Covenant of Mayors. The Covenant of Mayors commits its member states to curb their CO2 emissions by at least 20% by 2020. The partners of the project are Friedrichshafen (the leading partner, Germany), Murcia (Spain), Sale (Morocco), the Polotsk City Hall (Belarus) and the Inter-Mediterranean Commission of the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (France). The Covenant of Mayors signatories have already exceeded 2,000.

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