The Environmental Protection Agency Timiș, beneficiary of the LIFE Project “Conservation of habitat 8310 from the Natura 2000 Cheile Nerei – Beușnița Site”, organized, in collaboration with the Caras-Severin Environmental Protection Agency, activities dedicated to the “Celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Life Program”, generically called “25th Anniversary Caravan of the Life Program”.
The agenda of activities was as follows:
May 22, 2017
-Romanian Sasca from Caraș-Severin County, Cultural Center – opening of the event and presentation of the LIFE program and LIFE projects carried out by APM Timiș, APM Caras-Severin, APM Bihor and APM Satu Mare;
-Photography exhibition and Drawing exhibition
-Press conference, Cultural Center from Sasca Romană and Ponor Uscat Cave;
-Handing over the baton of the “25th Anniversary Caravan of the Life Program”, to the Center region;
-Visiting habitat 8310 from the area of the LIFE project 13 NAT /RO/001488 Conservation of habitat 8310 from the Natura 2000 Cheile Nerei – Beuşniţa Site, Ponor Uscat Cave;
May 23, 2017 – dedicated field visits:
-Travel to the implementation area of the LIFE project 10NAT/RO/740, demonstration activity in the Pojejena – Divici Special Avifaunistic Protection Area
-Visit to habitat 8310 in the Portile de Fier Natural Park – Gaura cu Muscă Cave.
-“Friends of Nature” drawing exhibition and presentation of the folk costume and dance from the Banat Mountains.
The purpose of the event was to inform stakeholders, activity administrators and the general public through media representatives, regarding the impact of anthropogenic activities on the natural heritage, better informing civil society, NGOs and local actors, as well as the transmission of information by the Ministry of Environment, as the National Contact Point, regarding the implementation and access of LIFE program funds at national level by a large number of beneficiaries.
On this occasion, a retrospective of the projects carried out through the LIFE Programme was carried out, of the way in which they contributed to protecting and improving the quality of the environment, to stopping the trend of biodiversity decline, as well as to the implementation of European Union policies and legislation in the field of environment and climate change.
During this event, we managed to bring together representatives from local public administrations in the project area, supervisory authorities (local police, gendarmerie), public control authorities – Environmental Guard, Forestry Districts, NGOs in the field of environmental protection and speleology, the Administration of the Cheile Nerei Beusnita National Park, the Administration of the Semenic – Cheile Carașului National Park, the Semenic – Cheile Carașului National Park, the Portile de Fier Natural Park in order to present the results obtained within several types of projects, which have contributed / contribute significantly to the protection of the environment and the conservation of biodiversity through the activities specific to each project.
On May 22, 2017, at Sasca Română in Caraș-Severin County, the Cultural Center, the official opening of the activities dedicated to the celebration of 25 years of the LIFE program took place, by Mr. Executive Director of APM Timiș Mihai CEPEHA, followed by the opening speech of Ms. Mădălina COZMA on behalf of the Ministry of Environment, Ms. Carmen Sorescu, Executive Director of APM Caraș-Severin, and the welcome speech by Mr. Poplicean Ion, Mayor of Sasca Montană Commune and Mr. Vasile Constantin, Director of the Cheile Nerei Beușnița National Park.
The photography exhibition from habitat 8310, carried out by the Speleological Association Exploratorii from Reșița and the Speleological Association Seo-Caraș, as well as the drawing exhibition – “Life in the cave through children’s eyes”, carried out by students from the implementation area of the project Conservation of habitat 8310 from the Natura 2000 Site Cheile Nerei – Beușnița, were exhibited.
Mrs. Madalian COZMA, manager of the IFE 14 Institutional Capacity Building project, implemented by the Ministry of Environment, made an extensive presentation of the LIFE program at European and national level, explained the financing mechanism of the LIFE program, as well as the areas of application.
This was followed by the presentation of the projects implemented or in the process of being implemented by APM Timiș, APM Caraș-Severin, APM Satu Mare, APM Bihor.
At the end of the presentations, the baton of the “25th Anniversary Caravan of the LIFE Program” was handed over to the Center region.
The first part of the event was concluded by holding a press conference at the Cultural Center in Sasca Română. Interviews were given to the written and television press by Mr. Executive Director Mihai Cepehe, Ms. Project Manager Mădălina COZMA, Ms. Carmen SORESCU – Project Manager, Mr. Farkas Szodoray-Parádi Project Manager, Mr. Balog Zoltan Project Coordinator and Mr. Laurentiu BARBOS. The press representatives also accompanied us to the field visits, where interviews were given by Ms. Georgeta ȚÎȚAN, Project Manager, Mr. Bogdan BADESCU – Technical Manager and Mr. Iosif MORAC, Speleologist at the Speleological Explorers Association of Resita.
In the second part of the day, there was a trip to the implementation area of the LIFE 13 NAT/RO/001488 project – visiting habitat 8310 in the Cheile Nerei Beuşniţa National Park, Bigar Cave and Bigar Spring. Participants had the opportunity to see a degraded and polluted cave on site and understood the need to apply conservation measures to habitat 8310.
On May 23, 2017, we traveled to the implementation area of the LIFE 10NAT/RO/740 project, where a demonstration activity took place in the Divici-Pojejena Special Avifaunistic Protection Area and we visited habitat 8310 in the Portile de Fier Natural Park – Gaura cu Muscă Cave.
In the second part of the day, in a festive and joyful setting, the students from the Sichevitsa Secondary School presented the folk costume and dance from the Banatul Montan. Under the guidance of Mrs. Prof. Florica Amalia Găină, the students also created an exhibition of drawings “Friends of Nature”. For their participation, the students and their teachers were rewarded with diplomas and informative materials.
The event was publicized both in the local mass-media in Caraș-Severin County and in the mass-media in Timiș County. Articles appeared in the written press and a report was broadcast on the banatTV television station http://www.btv.ro/proiect-pentru-reconstructia-ecologica-a-pesterilor/.
Persuasion activities for administrators, 22 to 23 May 2017, Sasca Romana