A mobile application called Trash Alert that will enable to rapidly assess the polluted areas in the Republic of Moldova will be developed in the framework of the project “Cleaner River, Cleaner Seas” (CRoCuS), simultaneously with a series of activities to prevent pollution by recycling, using cost-effective solutions. The project is implemented by two public associations of Moldova, WiSDOM and ECOTOX, in partnership with other associations of Bulgaria, Ukraine and Romania.

In a news conference at IPN, Nadejda Andreev, who heads the public association “Women in Sustainable Development of Moldova” (WiSDOM), said that as part of this project they will promote waste recycling facilities and will assess the plastic and organic waste recycling opportunities. Among the planned activities are the purchase of equipment for making coal, compost and staging of such cleanup activities as eco-picnics.

Elena Zubkov, the manager of the public association “Society of Ecotoxicologists of the Republic of Moldova” (ECOTOX), said the project’s activities will be aimed at studying the situation in the basic of the Prut River. Surface waters in Moldova are most of the times polluted by substances deriving from domestic wastewater that increases the quantity of easily biodegradable and hardly biodegradable organic compounds. Within the project, they will stage common activities with mates from Bulgaria, Ukraine and Romania so as to exchange experience.

Lucia Biletski, of WiSDOM, noted that the project is to be completed on December 31, 2022. Its budget is of about €487,000, 92% of which is provided by the EU through the Neighborhood Investment Facility, while 8% represents the co-financing of project beneficiaries. The project forms part of the EU’s Joint Operational Program Black Sea Basin 2014-2020.