The Minister of Environment and Water Manol Genov and the Mayor of Ruse Municipality Pencho Milkov signed a contract for funding a project aimed at implementing green measures in urban environments for cleaner air.

The main objective of the project is to improve the quality of ambient air on the territory of Ruse Municipality by reducing emissions of fine particulate matter (PM10). The activities are aimed at limiting sources of secondary dust and purifying the air naturally by expanding green areas in urban environments and planting plant species with the highest degree of PM10 capture.

The project will build 8.53 hectares of green infrastructure on the territory of the city of Ruse. As a result, it will reduce PM10 emitted by passing vehicles and by secondary dust originating from areas occupied by "mud patches", and will provide a plant barrier for other air pollutants. Within the framework of the project, parking pegs, perforated plates and curbs will be installed in order to protect the financed green areas in the inter-block spaces. An irrigation system will be built to ensure the climate sustainability of the green infrastructure.

Nearly 140000 people will directly feel the implact of the measures.

The project will contribute to the implementation of Bulgaria’s commitments in the "Air" sector and the achievement of goals coming from European and national legislation, according to the 2017 Decision of the European Court of Justice for non-compliance with the norms of maximum permissible values of particulate matter in atmospheric air.

The total value of the investment is over 3.5 million BGN. The grant provided by the Environment Program 2021-2027 is in the amount of 2.8 million BGN.

The project is being implemented within the framework of the procedure "Green Measures in Urban Environment" under priority 5 "Air" of the Environment Program 2021-2027.

The expected implementation period for the project is 40 months.