The candidate for mayor of Chisinau of the Revival Party Vasile Bolea proposes a plan for greening the capital city and for keeping and renovating the parks and squares. In a news conference, the candidate said the designing of an efficient and sustainable greening plan is not only a necessity, but also a duty, IPN reports.

According to Vasile Bolea, the proposed plan was developed and consulted with specialists who worked on it for months and includes a comprehensive strategy for extending the green areas, planting new trees and rehabilitating the existing parks. Each zone of the municipality was studied to determine what species of plants and trees are the most suitable there, given the specific soil. The study covered also the suburban settlements of the municipality of Chisinau.

The candidate considers the green cities mean not only a healthy environment, but also healthy people. The green spaces reduce stress, improve the quality of air, offer recreational places. From economic viewpoint, the green spaces increase the value of the buildings situated close to them, attracting tourists.

Referring to the proposed program, Vasile Bolea said that its implementation is the task not only of the Chisinau City Hall, but also of the inhabitants, the business community, noncommercial organizations, private companies as the municipality should be helped to set up more green spaces.

The costs associated with the implementation of the program are significant. Therefore, they will look for foreign financing as an alternative to local budget funding.

When green areas are developed, these will have to be maintained. Therefore, they will introduce educational programs in schools, awareness-raising campaigns and cooperation with urban planning departments so as to ensure the future development of the green spaces.

Vasile Bolea said the latest studies show the percentage of green spaces in the capital city is under the average recommended by the United Nations. As a result, the quality of air and the health and quality of life of citizens are affected. Earlier, Chisinau had 27 square meters of green spaces per capita. Today the figure is much smaller.