A national workshop dedicated to climate change was recently held at the Hotel Yasmín in Košice. Under the auspices of the European Union Convention of Mayors and the CLIMADAM project, the event brought together experts, activists and members of the public to discuss issues related to climate change and present ways to respond to them.
During the event, experts presented the latest knowledge and studies regarding climate change and its environmental impact. The workshop was divided into three main blocks. The first part was devoted to climate change in Slovakia, where speakers from the Ministry of Agriculture of the Slovak Republic, the Ministry of the Environment of the Slovak Republic and the Slovak Environment Agency spoke. Strategic documents on climate change adaptation were also presented within this block.
Photo: KSR
Photo: KSR
Regional perspective
The second block was dedicated to climate change from a regional perspective. The presenters presented the development of the climate in Slovakia with regard to regional specifics using the SHMÚ database. The average global temperature has risen by 1.3°C in the last 100 years, in the northern hemisphere by 2°C. In Hurbanov, the average temperature in 2018 and 2019 reached 12.4°C, which represents “Mediterranean” values. In the coming decades, summer heat waves punctuated by torrential rainfall and declining snow cover are expected. Higher air temperatures will lead to further drying. One of the presenters drew attention to the cause of warming and extreme phenomena, which is the increased greenhouse effect as a result of higher CO2 concentration.
Information was also heard at the workshop that climate change is a serious global problem and is therefore a challenge not only to reduce the concentration of CO2, for example by binding carbon into plant biomass through photosynthesis, but also to dampen heat differences by retaining water in the country/soil, returning organic matter to the soil , replenishment of underground water supplies.
Photo: KSR
How to proceed?
The last part of the workshop was focused on concrete steps at the city level in the fight against climate change. In the third block, information was heard about the possibility of financing measures for adaptation to climate change, especially through the Operational Program Slovakia and the Norwegian Financial Mechanism. The challenges presented, which will be announced in autumn 2023, are dedicated to sustainable management of rainwater, especially in urban environments.
The city of Košice presented the implementation of already started adaptation measures, and the city of Zvolen managed to fulfill the local adaptation strategy, which was properly incorporated into the city’s spatial plan, which has a very positive effect on the further climate-resistant development of the city.
Participants watching the workshop had the opportunity to respond to the lectures on the online platform, and at the end of each block, all their questions were answered. The public’s interest was related to obtaining funds for the implementation of climate change measures, proposals for solutions for specific locations and the current situation in the context of adaptation processes. The audience’s attention was captured by the Catalog of Green Measures, which briefly presents appropriate revitalization measures for various facilities and campuses.
The workshop was organized in cooperation with the Košice self-governing region. The conference on climate change took place as part of the outputs of the CLIMADAM project, financed by EEA Grants and the budget of the Slovak Republic.
