The first afforestation campaign of the Public Center for Environment and Sustainable Development, together with the CashON campaign of “MiaZoo”, took place on the International Volunteer Day – December 5. In the courtyard of UMBAL “St. Marina” volunteers planted and strengthened linden saplings purchased with funds from the campaign.
For a year, for every courier box MiaZoo customers returned instead of throwing away, the company donated 30 cents to the reforestation cause. The collected funds were donated to the “Leaf” fund at the Public Center for Environment and Sustainable Development. Thus, the benefits for nature came in at least two directions – firstly, no paper was destroyed and no trees were cut down for its production, and secondly – urban areas were reforested.
In recent years, online deliveries have grown exponentially, and with them the used packaging paper, such as cartons, boxes, envelopes, etc. The message the organizers of the CashON campaign are sending is that every carton is a tree saved from being cut down. Let’s look at it not as packaging, but as a resource that can bring benefits to both the economy and the environment. A carton can be used up to 7 times, and after amortization can be sent for recycling and turned into paper again.
On the other hand, urbanization and redevelopment in Varna in recent years have led to a drastic reduction of trees. The green areas of a resident of Varna are twice less than the legally required. This worsens the urban environment and quality of life of the inhabitants of the maritime capital.
After the hurricane in mid-November, dozens of trees were broken and uprooted in Varna. In the yard of the university hospital, the storm brought down 6 tree trunks, 40-60 cm thick. Apart from that, Primorski area is one of the most desired for construction investments. This happens at the expense of hundreds of trees and green spaces, which are forever erased by the carats of the city. Compensation programs are usually implemented outside the directly affected neighborhood and not infrequently have controversial results.
Public Center for Environment and Sustainable Development decided to promote the citizen initiative for afforestation of urban areas. We started by researching the permit regimes for planting trees in public spaces. We made an inquiry on the subject to the Municipality of Varna, the Regional Administration and the Regional Forestry Department. We also held a meeting with one of the deputy mayors of the city. The goal is to analyze the issues and describe the steps for issuing a permit to plant trees on public land. The transparency of the process would encourage other companies, like MiaZoo, to organize recycling and reforestation campaigns.
The contribution of all participants in the CashON campaign last year was BGN 300. Linden trees and peat mixture were purchased with the amount. The work of the volunteers who planted and the experts who organized the process was free. Work continues on giving publicity to the process for permit regimes for afforestation by citizens and socially responsible companies in Varna.
