GREEN MAN: Project successfully restored 17 ha of green areas in border cities

In October 2014 the cross-border cooperation project “GreenMan” or, as a whole, “Tartu, Rezekne, Pskov: Green Management & Planning for the “Capitals” of EE-LV-RU Border Area” was finalized. Start of the project dated back 30 months earlier, in May 2012.


Tartu (Estonia), Rezekne (Latvia) and Pskov (Russia) are the main cities in the border area, and like many other big settlements they often suffer insufficient development of urban green landscapes. The mission of GreenMan project was to bring together key municipal, academic and non-governmental actors from the three neighboring countries to think about better green management strategies for their home cities, to share experience and to create new urban green spaces.

                

                                    

     

Altogether ten different institutions were united by the project idea, namely: NGO “Lake Peipsi Project, Pskov” (the Lead Partner, Russia), Administration of Pskov City (Russia), Pskov State University (Russia), Peipsi Center for Transboundary Cooperation (Estonia), Tartu City Government (Estonia), Estonian University of Life Sciences, Latvian Office of Euroregion “Country of Lakes”, Rezekne City Council (Latvia), Rezekne Local Municipality (Latvia) and Daugavpils University (Latvia).


The consortium was built up according to the triple-helix like principle - NGO – University – Municipality – from each side of the border.

     

                                       


The NGOs acted as a driving force and national coordinators, initiating joint discussions and studies, organizing seminars, study trips and trainings, popularizing and promoting the activities and results of the project.


The Universities contributed to the improvement of green management systems in the target cities by analyzing the cities’ needs, implementing scientific inventories of urban green areas, studying of world green practices and software for green management. 


   


Municipalities became the main “recipients” of the project results and implemented the project part related to creation of new green landscapes.


      


During 2+ years of the implementation course, the project could achieve outstanding results. More than 350 key specialists attended the project educational activities, which covered practically each aspect of urban green management, from general strategies to narrow peculiarities of tree care.

Nearly 5500 trees, which grow on a total territory of 40 ha, were identified and scientifically described in the cities to form databases for green management systems.    


      

       


Over 17 ha of green areas were restored or newly-appeared that provided a substantial input into the overall green coverage of the three cities. 
4 sets of design and technical documents for future green territories were prepared that provides reservation of additional 10 ha for public parks.


    


One of the main project emphases was to facilitate establishing sustainable green strategy for the three participating cities for the long-run. In this regard the project could develop two absolutely unique publications: a detailed manual for municipal specialists “Urban Green Space Management” and a university study course on green management, which will serve  both for teaching new generations of green managers in the project universities and for extension studies for green specialists.


      


And the last but not least – experts attracted by the project developed GIS-based electronic green management systems, which were delivered to Tartu, Rezekne and Pskov municipalities to use like main instruments and tools to manage urban greenery.

The new and restored green areas  - the global achievement of the project – were the following: Friendship Alley (0.4 ha), Rozarium of Partner Cities (0.02 ha), Nature Trail (5 km) in Tartu (Estonia), Childrens' Recreation Area in Raina Park (0.6 ha) and Ancupani Forest Park in Rezekne (9.48 ha) (Latvia), The Dendropark (6.4 ha) in Pskov (Russia). The design documents were worked out for the following territories: Mathiesen Park (2.4 ha) in Tartu, North Industrial Zone Park (2 ha) and Greivuli Recreation Path (2 km) in Rezekne, Botanic Garden (5 ha) in Pskov.

 
      


The project was supported by Estonia-Latvia-Russia Cross-Border Cooperation Programme within European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument 2007-2013. The total project duration was 30 months, from May 2012 to October 2014. The total project budget was 1.948.194,78 EUR (the Programme co-financing was 90% or 1.753.375,30 EUR).

The project web-site: http://greenmanproject.org

Project PORTFOLIO

Press-release is submitted by Olga Vasilenko
Project Manager
NGO “Lake Peipsi Project, Pskov”
Mob. phone +7 911 3628679
e-mail: peipsi_project@yahoo.com