by Olga Senova
In the first half of July Friends of the Baltic held a number of presentations of SPARE for teachers and public organizations in Kaliningrad region (the western enclave of Russia), in Lithuania and Poland, discussed local climate-friendly energy solutions, shared their experiences of energy saving in residential areas and schools as part of the international public environmental bicycle campaign "Sea-Nature-Energy".
On the 8th of July a meeting on environmental issues of local development (including energy) was held in the City Hall of Klaipeda (Lithuania). Lithuanian experts spoke about their energy efficiency improvement work in housing and the difficulties they faced when looking for investment and motivating residents to take part in joint energy efficiency measures in their houses. O. Senova presented the SPARE project as a way of informing not only students and their parents, but residents too about simple measures of energy saving. She spoke about "The day of energy saving" international action and handed the SPARE kit to the vice-mayor of Klaipeda.
Participants of the bycicle campaign at the oil platform D-6On the 12th of July participants of the bicycle campaign visited the oil platform D6. Its peak production will occur in the 2012-2020, and by 2040 its reserves will be exhausted. It is an occasion to think about energy alternatives. Participants of the bicycle campaign - NGOs and journalists - learned with interest about the plans of LUKOIL-Kaliningradmorneft of using renewable carbon-free energy sources, and that wind resource assessment is being conducted to install wind generators on the coast near Lukoil objects. There is an experience of introducing carbon-free energy in Kaliningrad region. A wind farm of 21 units with total capacity of 5,1 MW is now operating in Kulikovo village. Unfortunately, this promising solution did not stop the dangerous plans for nuclear energy development. Baltic nuclear power plant is now being built near Kaliningrad although the issue of safe disposal of radioactive waste such as waste of existing nuclear power plants, either in Russia or in other countries is not resolved. Renewable energy for Lukoil is an exotic initiative not considered to be equal to the oil strategic direction now. However, Russian Socio-Ecological Union and Friends of the Baltic believe that the development of renewable energy sources and preparation for the "carbon-free" scenario is a far-sighted energy policy and a guarantee of stability for the oil companies especially in the critical days for the extractive hydrocarbons industries associated with the dramatic events in the Gulf of Mexico.
Meeting-seminar for energy-efficiency aspects at the Kaliningrad office of the Nordic Council of MinistersThe same day a round table for the public and teachers took place in Kaliningrad. Among the participants was a representative the office of the Nordic Council of Ministers (NCM) that works to raise awareness of municipalities on energy efficiency. The participants discussed ways of educating children and adults on climate and energy saving. SPARE program (www.spareworld.org) is already known in Kaliningrad but schools have not joined it in full yet.
Representatives of Friends of the Baltic coordinating SPARE in Russia handed some SPARE materials to the NCM and teachers participating of the seminar. Great interest in the project was expressed by a school from Bolshoe Isakovo, whose director Alex Golubitsky, a longtime partner of Friends of the Baltic, has worked in public environmental programs for many years. This year a new school building is opening. It is built with the latest technology, in compliance with energy-saving technologies. The school will have modern equipment and has big plans for the development of environmental education including education on climate and energy.
SPARE presentation for teachers and puplic representatives in the village Bolshoe Isakovo, Kaliningrad region
Participants of the bycicle campaign meet partners from Kaliningrad, school in the village Bolshoe Isakovo, Kaliningrad region
In accordance with the Federal Law 26 on energy saving energy certificates and programs of energy saving measures will be developed for each budget organization in the near future. According to Russian Socio-Ecological Union, it is important to involve school teachers to this work, use the experience of SPARE to find reserves for energy saving and introduction of simple measures by schoolchildren and school administrations. This is one of the priorities of SPARE and Socio-Ecological Union's program "Education for sustainable development in field of climate and energy" (http://rusecounion.ru/edu_program).
The conversation at the round table was about simple ways of energy saving in houses and apartments. Friends of the Baltic and Centre for Environmental Initiatives presented the publications "Energy in the house", "Be one's own power engineer", a set of posters on energy saving solutions for buildings. As the heat and hot water take the overwhelming share of home energy consumption, modernization of heating systems and installation of systems of registration and regulation of heat and hot water in houses are especially needed. It will bring the highest economic and environmental benefits.
July 14-15 meetings and discussions on environmental education with members of the Polish Ecological Club in Gdansk and Vladislavovo took place in Poland. The representative of the SPARE international organizing committee Julia Klippert handed the SPARE kit to Polish colleagues and invited them to participate in the project.
For more information please contact:
Olga Senova +7 921 9117986, Julia Klippert +7 921 7444255
