German environmental organizations. Environmental protection in Germany. Frequently asked questions from foreigners about ecological zones in Germany
Greenpeace
WILDLIFE FUND (WWF)
International Social and Ecological Union (ISEU)
International environmental organization Bellona
International Green Cross Association
International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN)
All-Russian Society for Nature Conservation (VOOP)
Center for Environmental Policy of Russia (CEPR)
Russian environmental movement "Greens"
Non-governmental environmental foundation named after V.I. Vernadsky
Russian Regional Environmental Center (RREC)
All-Russian public organization "Green Patrol"
Russian Green Cross
Movement of Nature Conservation Teams (DOP)
Environmental organizations of the world
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is an international public environmental organization founded in Vancouver, Canada on September 15, 1971 by David McTaggart.
The main goal of the organization is to achieve solutions to global environmental problems, attracting the attention of the public and authorities to them.
Greenpeace exists only through donations from supporters and, as a matter of principle, does not accept financial assistance from government agencies, political parties or businesses.
Greenpeace is against violence in any form; all actions do not accept any form of violence as a method of achieving goals.
Wildlife Foundation (WWF)
World Wildlife Fund (WorldWideFundforNature) is an international public independent organization working in the fields of conservation, research and restoration of the environment.
With more than 5 million supporters worldwide, WWF operates in more than 90 countries and supports approximately 1,300 conservation projects worldwide.
The mission of the World Wildlife Fund is to prevent the increasing degradation of the planet's natural environment and achieve harmony between man and nature. The main goal is to preserve the Earth's biological diversity.
International Social and Ecological Union (ISEU)
The International Social-Ecological Union is an international environmental organization founded in December 1988.
At the moment, ISoES consists of more than 10 thousand people from 17 countries.
The main idea of creating the ISoES is to gather under one roof people who care what happens to the Earth, its nature and culture, its people, our children and grandchildren.
International environmental organization Bellona
Bellona is an international environmental association.
The central office of the association is located in the capital of Norway - Oslo. The Bellona Association began its work as a non-governmental organization in 1986.
In the late 1980s, Bellona gained widespread fame thanks to spectacular actions organized against a number of industrial companies that were responsible for serious environmental sins. Over more than 20 years of work, Bellona has become a major environmental expert organization whose main goal is to combat environmental destruction, threats to human health caused by pollution, and the negative environmental consequences of certain global economic development strategies.
In April 1998, the St. Petersburg public organization “Environmental Human Rights Center Bellona” was established, which is the St. Petersburg office of the international environmental association Bellona. The organization's activities are based on the belief that the human rights to live in a favorable environment and to have reliable environmental information are the fundamental rights of every person, since these rights relate to the most valuable thing - the health and life of people.
Green cross
Green Cross International (GCI) is an environmental organization founded by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in 1993, based on agreements reached at the 1992 World Forum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Green Cross is a non-governmental and non-profit organization.
Environmental organizations of Russia
All-Russian Society for Nature Conservation (VOOP)
The All-Russian Society for Nature Conservation (VOOP) was founded in 1924 as a voluntary Society for Nature Conservation.
Today, VOOP is an all-Russian, public, cultural and educational environmental organization.
Goals:
Preserving the environment, maintaining the diversity of flora and fauna.
Preservation and strengthening of public health.
The main activities of the Company:
Providing assistance to government authorities and management in ensuring sustainable environmentally friendly development of the country.
Environmental education, enlightenment and education of the population.
Scientific, technical and practical environmental activities. Consulting activities of natural resource management entities.
Carrying out environmental monitoring of territories on our own and by accredited companies.
Introduction of modern high-precision technologies in order to implement effective state environmental control
Center for Environmental Policy of Russia (CEPR)
The Center for Environmental Policy of Russia was created in 1993 as a professional public environmental organization to provide expert support to the environmental movement and develop recommendations for the legislative and executive authorities.
Russian environmental movement "Greens"
In 1994, on the basis of the environmental movement “Cedar”, the Russian Environmental Party “Greens” was created; in 2009, the activities of the Political Party were discontinued, and the organization itself was reorganized into the All-Russian Public Movement “Russian Environmental Movement “Greens”.
The goal of the environmental movement “Greens” is to change the attitude of the state and society to the environmental problems of Russia and humanity as a whole through organized and strong-willed political actions.
Non-governmental environmental fund named after. V.I.Vernadsky
The non-governmental environmental fund named after V.I. Vernadsky was created in 1995.
The Environmental Foundation is one of the largest charitable organizations that supports environmentally oriented educational projects, represents the interests of the Russian environmental community and socially responsible business, and is an initiator and participant in environmental programs developing in Russia.
The main objectives of the Fund: promoting sustainable environmentally oriented socio-economic development of society, ensuring interaction between the business community, government and society on issues of sustainable development; support for environmental initiatives and projects.
Areas of activity of the Foundation: environmental education and upbringing; holding a competition for grants and scholarships named after. V.I.Vernadsky; holding national and international conferences, symposiums, exhibitions on sustainable development; publication of scientific, popular science, educational literature on the main areas of the Foundation’s activities.
Russian Regional Environmental Center (RREC)
The Russian Regional Environmental Center was established in 2000 by the European Commission and the Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Russian Federation.
RREC is part of a network of regional environmental centers operating in Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia to support cooperation between government agencies, the business community and civil society in the field of environmental protection.
The mission of the center is to promote and implement advanced ideas, standards and methods for the environmental well-being and sustainable development of Russia through the organization of information dialogue and practical activities.
The highest governing body of the Russian center is the council of founders, the collegial governing body is the governing council, and an advisory body has been formed - the advisory council.
The eight members of the Board of Governors represent various sectors of society: government organizations of the Russian Federation, foreign organizations, Russian public organizations, business structures and scientific communities.
All-Russian public organization "Green Patrol"
The all-Russian public organization "Green Patrol" was registered in May 2006. In April 2007, the organization’s Internet resource was opened. The main goal of the organization is to promote the growth of the ecological culture of society, protect human rights to a favorable environment, clean water, quality food, protect the unique nature of Russia, and develop trends necessary for the sustainable development of the country.
Russian Green Cross
Green Cross is a non-governmental public organization, a member of the International Green Cross Association, created in 1994.
The Green Cross focuses on implementing measures to protect the environment, educating a wide range of the population in the ability to live and develop in accordance with the laws of nature, preserving it for posterity with the same resource potential that humanity owns today. The slogan of the Russian Green Cross - compromise instead of confrontation - corresponds to the principles of civil society, in which environmental problems are solved from the standpoint of partnership and good neighborliness.
Movement of Nature Conservation Teams (DOP)
The movement of Nature Protection Teams (DOP) appeared in the 60s of the twentieth century as a student environmental movement.
The directions and forms of work of the Movement of Nature Conservation Teams depend on the current situation, traditions and capabilities of the participants of the Movement, determined by its social and professional composition. The movement, which is based on students and natural science specialists, advocates competence and professionalism in the study and solution of environmental problems. At the same time, it will also participate in mass environmental campaigns.
The main thing for the participants of the Movement is specific practical environmental activities. It is unacceptable for him to turn this work into fashionable entertainment, political bait or a means of profit.
Environmental protection zones in Germany
Recently, at the entrances to the center of Munich, Cologne, Berlin and Hanover you can see signs with the inscription “Nature Protected Area”. In this way, the Germans are fighting air pollution, which is a problem in all megacities. Diesel engines of cars are one of the main causes of environmental pollution. Fine dust contained in the exhaust settles in human lungs. In areas where there is a lot of traffic, this dust is a serious health hazard. In two years, cars that run on a diesel engine will not be able to enter the environmental protection zone. Today, cars without a special sign-sticker on the front window are not allowed into these zones. This sticker is not issued to owners of vehicles that cause the greatest harm to the environment. These are trucks, diesel engines without special filters, cars with gasoline engines not equipped with Euro-catalysts. Today, some cars are given a red sticker - in two years they will not be able to enter the zone. Holders of green and yellow signs have no reason to worry. There are a huge number of parameters by which the degree of harm caused by a machine is assessed. Information about the car is entered into the computer, then a special program assigns it a certain category. Sticker signs are called plaques; they can be purchased at car repair shops, gas stations, or ordered online. The cost of such a sign is 6-19 euros. There will be more and more similar zones in Germany. By 2012 it is planned to cover more than a hundred cities. The authorities of Barcelona and London are also thinking about creating such territories. Perhaps this method of fighting for cleanliness will gain popularity around the world.
Umweltschutz ist in Deutschland als gemeinsame Aufgabe von Staat und seine Bürger anzusehen. Environmental Protection Zone in Deutschland Kürzlich, an den Eingängen zu der Münchner Innenstadt, kann Köln, Berlin und Hannover die Schilder mit der Aufschrift "Schutzgebieten" zu sehen. So sind die Deutschen kämpfen Luftverschmutzung, die ein Problem in allen Städten. Diesel-Motoren sind Maschinen - das ist eine der wichtigsten Ursachen von Umweltbelastungen. Feinstaub im Abgas enthaltenen reichert sich in der menschlichen Lunge. In Bereichen, in denen viel Verkehr konzentriert, wird der Staub eine ernsthafte Gefahr für die Gesundheit. Nach zwei Jahren Autos, die auf Diesel laufen, werden nicht in der Lage sein, um den Bereich des Umweltschutzes geben. Heute tun in diesen Zonen nicht zulassen, die Maschine ohne einen besonderen Charakter Aufkleber auf der Windschutzscheibe. Dieser Aufkleber ist nicht für Besitzer von Autos, die den größten Umweltschäden verursachen ausgestellt. Das Lkw-Dieselmotoren ohne spezielle Filter, Maschinen mit Benzinmotoren, nicht mit Euro-Katalysatoren ausgestattet. Heute hat nur sehr wenige Maschinen einen roten Aufkleber - zwei Jahre später, können sie nicht in die Zone zu bekommen. Haben die Eigentümer der grünen und gelben Schildern brauchen keine Sorgen zu machen. Es gibt eine Menge von Parametern, auf denen der Grad der Schädigung durch die Maschine zu beurteilen. Informationen über das Auto in den Computer gemacht wird, wird ein spezielles Programm weist eine spezifische Kategorie. Signs Aufkleber sind sogenannte Plaques, können bei Kfz-Shops, Tankstellen, über das Internet bestellt erworben werden. Die Kosten für dieses Zeichen ist 6-19 Euro. In Deutschland gibt es mehr solcher Zonen. Bis 2012 ist geplant, mehr als hundert Städten zu decken. Über die Einrichtung einer solchen Bereichen wie die Behörden denken Barcelona und London. Vielleicht ist diese Methode der Kampf um die Reinheit zu gewinnen Popularität in der ganzen Welt.
The land (in our opinion, the region) North Rhine-Westphalia has an area half as large as Bashkiria, but two large European rivers flow through it - the Rhine and the Ruhr, and this region is the main part of the famous Ruhr coal deposit. Duisburg is a city of steelworkers (1/3 of world steel production) and coal miners, the birthplace of Gerhard Mercator (16th century), the compiler of the first world maps and the creator of a system of geographical coordinates.
The metropolis covers an area of 320 sq. km, of which 47 are covered with parks, 21 sq. km. km are occupied by 165 rivers, canals and harbors and 589 hectares by lakes. Duispoort is the largest river port in the world, and its international logistics center for cargo transshipment operates on an area of 200 hectares between the port and the railway.
Analysis of cartographic material and the results of examining the city from different points, including from the top platform of the coke battery 75 meters high, showed that the city is steadily developing according to an optimal urban plan, the main task of which is to create comfortable conditions for people to live and work. Surprisingly, there are no traffic jams familiar to the Russian eye, although the roads are 1-2 lanes, and two cars can barely pass through the narrow streets. This phenomenon is explained simply: in the city it is not customary to build “dormitory” neighborhoods with “Chinese walls” of high-rise buildings (there is no influx of private cars during rush hours), very green residential areas of 2-3-story buildings are separated by parks and squares. The road network has clear traffic light regulation, mandatory bright white markings and optimal junctions and overpasses. At the same time, the sidewalk curbs are very low, and the pedestrian sidewalks themselves have bicycle paths lined with red paving stones. By the way, a bicycle as a means of transportation is very fashionable among residents, and you can rent a muscle-powered iron horse directly in street parking lots by paying for the rental online. And one more noteworthy thing is that “silent” asphalt laid on roads using a special technology and mass-used anti-noise screens on highways make it possible to protect roadside service facilities and residential buildings from noise and vibrations.
Gas stations are located even 20 meters from residential buildings. The cost of gasoline, of course, is twice as high as here in Russia, but, apparently, the quality of motor fuel is strictly controlled by the state, and, as a rule, there are no complaints from residents about the dangerous neighborhood and the smell of hydrocarbons. Public electric transport is well developed, and the presence of a network of river canals allows you to have your own yacht near your home for moving around the city.
Our 8-kilometer canoe trip with the yachtsmen along the city canals showed the relative purity of the river water and the complete absence of household waste on the well-maintained banks. It was even possible to visually communicate with a heron, a pair of white swans and wild ducks, which were not disturbed by the intense traffic of barges and cargo ships along the canals and the abundance of brightly painted bridges above them.
The main street of Duisburg with fountains, cafes and shopping centers - the local Broadway - is generally prohibited for car traffic, which, coupled with the above, allows us not to feel the gas pollution of the atmosphere that we are used to.
This is not to say that the courtyards in residential areas are spacious, but they are very cozy, landscaped, and everything you need, from cafes and shops to a pharmacy and a hairdresser, is literally within walking distance.
By the way, we also noticed a nostalgic picture, as if from our Soviet past: right in the city center along the railway, small summer cottages with temporary residential buildings are buried in flowers, of which there are a great many in our country in the security zones of railway lines.
And from the window of our hotel you can see the roof of the neighboring business center, on which there is a parking lot and a bright green lawn for staff relaxation. In general, the city is being intensively built up with modern buildings made of glass, metal and concrete, but taking into account the respect for the rights of citizens to a favorable environment and the creation of comfortable working and living conditions for them.
These are the living conditions of the venerable burghers in an industrial German city.
Green revolution - how it happened
From social activism to environmental policy in 40 years.
This is how we can briefly formulate the evolution of environmental consciousness among all levels of society in Germany. It is precisely for 40 years that we, Russians, lag behind this advanced European country in terms of comfort of life (which includes the state of the environment) and it is precisely its path that we have to go through at an accelerated pace, because our civilization no longer has time to build up and this , I think, will be confirmed by the upcoming world conference on sustainable development in Rio-Janeiro.
In the 70s, German burghers, who made good money at steel mills, suddenly began to think about the problems of their own health, an overly urbanized environment, excessively polluted lands and waters, and the destruction of forests. In the mid-70s of the last century, for example, fish in the Rhine completely disappeared and in the river water, the burgomaster accompanying us gloomily joked, it was possible to develop photographic film, the water was so chemically polluted. And then the population began to create public environmental organizations, which, through mass actions, through the press, through their deputies, began to raise environmental problems and demand their solution. Since democratic institutions in German society were already operating successfully at that time, public opinion in 10-15 years was transformed into political and legal decisions, and then into specific programs to improve the environment, which continue to this day. So, by 1995, a “cleaner production” policy emerged in Germany. And even local multimillionaires have become imbued with this ideology, showing not only a patriotic desire to pay tribute to nature, but also supporting civil environmental initiatives.
Industrial companies were given strict conditions: either you comply with the requirements for environmental protection and public health, or you pay huge fines and become uncompetitive, right up to closure. For example, in the mid-90s, one of the large metallurgical enterprises of the ThyssenKrupp company was sold by the owner to the state for 1 German mark with the subsequent reorganization of the territory, and a few years later the second steel mill was sold for 1 euro and in its place is now the largest log port . And on the site of the modern large IKEA supermarket, a coke production facility was previously located. The soil on the territory of the enterprises was saturated with heavy metals and other harmful substances, sometimes to a depth of 3 meters, and this layer of soil had to be removed and buried on a waterproof basis, followed by reclamation on top with clean soil, grassing and planting of trees. We saw such man-made mounds even on the banks of the Rhine.
The program with the lyrical name “Green and Blue” (forest and water) became one of the main programs of the city authorities.
Nature conservation at the initiative of the population is a priority in the policies of municipalities, regional authorities and the federal center, and the level of public environmental control of citizens has not decreased to this day, since ecology has become a prestigious activity, and the symptoms of climate change are already evident in Europe.
Public organizations such as NABU, BUND, Greenpeace and many other organizations and initiative groups, whose activities are largely supported by the state, are actively working. It is the public that influences the environmental image of firms and companies, the deprivation of which for “dirty” industries means absolute bankruptcy in the near future.
One of the important tools for interaction between the public and authorities are public environmental councils and commissions, created either under party organizations and relevant parliamentary factions, or under the mayor, environmental agencies and even under the federal chancellor.
Control over enterprises “from below” from the population, complements the control of the authorities “from above”, is stimulated by pressure on the national government from the European Union.
This is probably why about 10% of the population is involved in the environmental sector of the country’s economy, and the profession of an ecologist is prestigious. Thus, a young specialist who comes to work in the environmental service has a salary of about 3,000 Euros.
Environmental control in action
Unlike Russia, Germany maintains three-level environmental control from the vertical of power. These are the municipal, regional and federal levels. The municipal environmental service has about 100 specialists on staff, divided functionally into several departments. In addition to monitoring the state of water, forests, wildlife, sanitary control, environmental monitoring, food safety control, the municipal department issues permits for environmental use, approves sanitary protection zones, manages the movement of low-hazard industrial waste, provides environmental information to the population, organizes public discussion of problems and projects. There is also a main document - the city’s environmental passport, in accordance with which urban planning decisions are made.
We were unable to observe any onshore wastewater discharges (including storm water discharges), which led to the conclusion that only bottom dispersing discharges were present. All discharges are coordinated and strictly controlled by analytical services, as are the sanitary protection zones of drinking water intakes. Visually, the water in canals and rivers has neither a surface oil film nor floating debris, and its transparency is approximately 1 m. By the way, the water flow speed in the Rhine is twice as high as in our White River and swimming in the main riverbed is strictly prohibited , and heavy shipping on the Rhine makes this a very dangerous activity. It is because of the speed of the current that silt deposits are carried in the main channel in a suspended state to neighboring Holland.
The regional Ministry of Ecology of the Earth "North Rhine-Westphalia", which kindly presented our delegation with a motor ship for a walk along the Rhine (with a demonstration of sampling bottom silt), also provided the results of an analysis of samples of river water and bottom sediments, showing the retrospective annual dynamics of the decrease in the degree of pollution of this transboundary European watercourse However, background concentrations for individual ingredients are still high. Thus, the latest analyzes showed the titanium content - 8 mg/l, vanadium - 1.1 mg/l, cyclohexane -5 mg/l, sodium -27 mg/l. In recent years, regional ecologists have been concerned about the increase in the content of medications in the river and silt that are used by the population and are not captured at wastewater treatment plants. The influence of these substances, especially during their chemical interaction, on the human body is very poorly studied. Thus, the latest indicators for metapropol in river water are 0.11 mg/l. In general, analytical monitoring of the aquatic environment covers about 300 types of substances and compounds.
The warning system for emergency discharges of harmful substances into the Rhine basin is a separate song, very quickly performed by all components of this system. If an unauthorized discharge is detected, a citizen (and this is not considered denunciation, it is encouraged in all ways) immediately calls the water police and within a few minutes specialists go to the specified location, conduct an express analysis of the water sample and, if confirmed, immediately notify all interested services along the entire length of the river downstream, accompanying the stain of pollution and trying to localize and neutralize it. The same applies to the establishment of extreme pollution by state analytical services. As a result, the person responsible for the dumping receives serious penalties, including suspension of production.
The gray smoky sky of the Ruhr region is a thing of the past
Our group could not help but include a visit to a modern steel smelting plant in the program and we spent almost a full day at the coke plants and blast furnaces of the ThyssenKrupp company, which has occupied 9 square meters for 400 years. km of Rhine coastline in the center of Duisburg and now producing 12 million steel per year. The main specialists of the plant took us around the entire territory, demonstrated the entire technological process of preparing coke and cooking steel, and answered all our questions. A sore point - the plant's emissions into the atmosphere - was resolved in 2003 by introducing an expensive new coke preparation technology, which made it possible to reduce emissions by 90%. All stationary emission sources are equipped with analyzer sensors that transmit information online to the municipal control room, which can quickly respond in case of emergency situations. In case of unfavorable weather conditions (calm weather) or emergency situations, a regime of emission restrictions is introduced and this is controlled by an in-plant environmental service with a staff of 20 specialists and a video surveillance system at the enterprise. By the way, the city has 9 automatic stations for environmental monitoring of atmospheric air, as well as 114 points for automatically measuring dust content in the city atmosphere.
Of course, there are still residential buildings in the sanitary zone of the enterprise and the enterprise has a program for relocating 5,000 residents to new apartments within 10 years.
The plant has a closed water supply system and the water circulation system only needs recharge. Purification of wastewater before discharge into the Rhine, according to the assurances of the specialists accompanying us, allows this water to be reused.
Industrial waste is used in construction, for filling road bases and for the production of mineral fertilizers.
The view that opened up to us from a height of 75 meters from the coke oven battery impressed us with the complete absence of emissions from the chimneys of the plant. Steam emissions were observed only from cooling towers and during a one-time loading of prepared coke into a blast furnace. Automation of coke production makes it possible to periodically maintain several dozen coke ovens simultaneously, and in automatic mode. By the way, we inquired about the education and salary of a coke oven operator who controls the production process mainly through a computer. Advanced training courses for basic secondary education and 2.5 thousand euros per month. Not bad for a specialist of this level.
The high level of production culture is confirmed by the bold, thoughtful and bright design of technological installations, buildings and the surrounding area. The multi-colored walls of the workshops and pipes go well with green lawns, flower beds and alleys of trees, carefully fortified with supplies from strong winds. And even the factory canteen looks more like a restaurant.
However, the beautiful picture of the plant’s environmental activities that was painted for us seemed too glamorous in places, as we had to verify a few hours later when we saw from the side that a pair of ThyssenKrupp chimneys that were inoperative during our visit were slightly smoking with a light smoke. Well, this is a normal desire to show Russian journalists only the best that the enterprise has.
And although there are many industrial enterprises in the residential area of the city, the sky of the Ruhr cannot be compared in color and depth with the atmosphere above our cities of Ufa, Sterlitamak, Salavat, Magnitogorsk, Chelyabinsk and many other industrial centers, which have a cap of smog for most of the year .
Landscape technology park – a combination of opposites
The problem of eliminating accumulated environmental damage is very acute in Russia, but we are only approaching its resolution in small steps. In Germany, this issue has been gradually resolved for two decades. As noted above, a number of large plants were completely demolished with the clearing of the liberated territory. Some enterprises are partially operating at minimum capacity, and parks and attractions have been set up in the sanitized area. At the same time, part of the factory walls is often left as a symbol of industrialization and painted with fancy colored drawings in the “graffiti” style. Thus, the cozy cafe “U Kozy” on a yellow-sand beach with a park and a small herd of wooden sheep, whose evening guests we had to become, was built on the former river pier of a steel rolling plant.
But the most amazing thing we saw was a unique industrial park, spread over an area of 200 hectares, previously occupied by a steel smelting plant. This is an example of not just the remediation of the territory, but also its successful commercial use. The entire infrastructure of the plant, right down to the coke ovens and steel-smelting furnaces, was left unchanged, but adapted... for the recreation of citizens, essentially turned into a recreational area.
Thus, a huge blast furnace is equipped with metal stairs and observation platforms, and is used not only to admire the beautiful urban landscape, but also as a practical tool for groups of students. Coal storage bunkers with walls and concrete towers 10 meters high are equipped with 3,000 climbing routes with appropriate equipment, flower beds of bright and varied flowers (there is even a Queen of Flowers room), and for projecting slides and videos about nature onto a concrete wall.
There are even children's slides, sandboxes with manual stainless steel excavators, and sports grounds.
The roof of the former pumping house (where large units were left) was insulated, an amphitheater of seats for 800 seats was installed, unique computer lighting was installed, and here, in the former production workshop with concrete walls and excellent acoustics, concerts of famous musicians and performances of touring and local theaters are held. In the spacious foyers of this theater, next to the permanently stopped generators, there are bar counters and these premises are used by the city authorities even for official receptions.
A large steel fuel tank with a volume of 5,000 cubic meters is equipped with... a swimming pool, at the bottom of which is the skeleton of a helicopter and a small boat. The pool is used for training of lifeguards and divers.
The steel rolling shop has a length of 180 meters and this hall with 4.5 thousand seats is intended for party congresses, car exhibitions, and even the famous illusionist D. Copperfield performed there.
The sports grounds and green zone of the landscape technology park are used for other mass cultural and sporting events of citizens. By the way, 1,800 species of animals live on its territory, about 300 people discuss all this, and the annual budget of the park is 5 million Euros.
Waste into income
The Duisburg municipal service is engaged in the repair of roads and road infrastructure, lighting, maintenance of sewer networks, maintenance of bridges, but its most basic function is the management of solid household waste. 28 branches of this enterprise accept various types of waste from the population. Thus, conscious residents bring and hand over mercury lamps and appliances, waste household chemicals, and batteries for free, but residents have to pay for accepting asbestos-containing household waste (slate, pipes, cords, gaskets) (270 Euro per ton), since the use of asbestos is prohibited in Germany and Such carcinogenic waste is stored in a special container.
By the way, for a fee (in addition to one set of 5 tires per resident), worn-out tires are also rented out, which, after recycling, are used in cement production.
For waste glass and glass containers, there are three types of containers (for different colors of glass), which in the amount of 320 pieces, installed in microdistricts, are periodically unloaded into special vehicles. This is one of two sorted household waste (the second is paper and cardboard), for which special transport and special containers are provided.
Everything else is necessarily sorted mainly at the collection stage. The city has 102 thousand containers for general waste and 32 thousand for paper. In the offices of large companies there are large containers with electronic records of waste types.
The economic incentive mechanism is working effectively.
Citizens pay a monthly garbage tax. In addition, the stores have machines for accepting glass containers, batteries, plastic PET bottles and aluminum cans. For example, the cost of a returned bottle is 25 cents and this amount can be deducted from the cost of the purchase made in the store. Recyclable glass containers can be used no more than 25 times, after which they are recycled.
Of course, all this does not solve the problem of complete waste sorting, which is carried out at sorting stations mainly automatically.
A special procedure for working with the collection of mercury-containing products. Any pharmacy accepts mercury thermometers free of charge, and lamps are regularly collected in residential areas by special eco-mobiles. Mercury sensors are installed at all sorting complexes, and in practice there have been cases of automatic shutdown of conveyors at sorting stations due to the detection of mercury vapor in garbage, followed by demercurization of the premises.
Thus, approximately 50% of incoming household waste is used as secondary raw materials, the rest goes to waste incineration plants with modern treatment of emissions from dioxins and furans (their cost is 20% of the main production) and energy generation from combustion. But, as a rule, there is not enough domestic waste to fully load factories and it has to be imported from neighboring countries (Italy). At the same time, waste paper and cardboard (sorted from each other) are transported by trailer to neighboring Holland for recycling and this is considered profitable. By the way, the monthly salary of garbage collectors is 1500 -2000 Euros. The municipal waste company's annual waste turnover is 216 million Euros and up to 10 thousand types of waste are in circulation. The profit generated by the recycling of waste by the 400 employees of the company involved in this area is up to 70 million Euros per year.
Until the 70s, Duisburg had a problem with numerous unauthorized waste dumps, but now this is a rarity, since residents or video cameras instantly alert the control authorities and the culprit is quickly found and punished. And what’s interesting is that if residents take unsorted garbage to the container site, then the municipal workers simply don’t pick it up. And when you move to a new apartment, the utility service takes away all unnecessary household rubbish for free using its own transport.
Less and less natural environment, more and more environment
Alas, in some ways I feel sorry for the residents of Duisburg. If in Russia you can still go to the river bank, go fishing for free, make a fire and relax in the wild, then in European countries this is impossible, since the population density is high and every piece of land has its own owner.
Familiarization with the functioning of a specially protected area (like our reserve) on the bend of the Rhine proved this to us. Of course, car traffic is prohibited on its territory and you can only walk or ride a bicycle there. Among the representatives of the animal world, we came across only a dozen hares (and maybe rabbits), and stuffed nutria, an owl and a kingfisher were demonstrated.
The flora is represented, apart from forest belts, very poorly, which is not surprising, since most of the fields are used for haymaking. The protection of the reserve is carried out under an agreement with the city administration... by a farmer whose extensive farm, including horses and sheep, occupies a significant part of this territory. Unfortunately, however, this organic farming industry appears to be at a financial impasse.
By the way, the supervisory authorities of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia have banned the consumption of wild animal liver due to the presence of dangerous amounts of harmful substances in it, and dioxins have been found in milk and eggs from farms.
Such urbanized nature, of course, cannot be called real and city dwellers, unfortunately, do not have the opportunity to spend a day off in pristine, environmentally friendly conditions, but they do have the opportunity to go for a couple of days, for example, to the North Sea coast in Holland or to fly to the Caribbean.
New technologies - a breakthrough into the future
Europe's largest institute of environmental and energy-saving technologies is located in Duisburg and we, of course, could not help but visit it. The Institute has a solid research and production base, 150 full-time employees and an annual turnover of 10 million Euros. Its main tasks include the development and implementation of environmentally effective technologies to minimize environmental damage by industrial enterprises. For example, flue gas purification using nanomaterials, neutralization of waste from the pharmaceutical industry in wastewater, waste recycling, desalination and water purification, regeneration of used activated carbons, bench testing and certification of filters, etc. Express acquaintance with the developments of the institute allowed us to conclude that cooperation with this institution is necessary. Our delegation was especially interested in the technology for recycling liquid crystal TV screens with the extraction of the rare earth metal - indium.
The technologies demonstrated to us at the Efficiency Center for heating with geothermal water, electronic systems for controlling lighting and movement in offices, and the construction and operation of energy-saving “smart houses” are also very promising in Russia. By the way, Germany has become a world leader in “green construction” and already has entire villages with wind power plants and solar panels that do not require external energy sources.
Stairway to heaven as a symbol of the desire to reach the heights of progress
The yellow metal staircase, 50 meters high, rising into the Duisburg sky above its main street, symbolizes the city's desire to achieve the impossible and much of this dream has become a reality. We, Russians, have seen what our industrial cities should become in the near future, if, of course, we make every effort to make maximum use of the experience of environmental work in Germany and other advanced European countries. To do this, the brands of our cities must contain concern for people, and not the presence of a certain industry (for example, “Ufa is a city of petrochemicals.” An optimal compromise between economics and ecology is possible, as the example of Duisburg showed, and there is a lot to learn from Germany.
In practical terms, the result of this trip for me was not only the acquisition of knowledge, but also the opportunity to continue cooperation with the city to in-depth familiarize our entrepreneurs with the city’s waste management system, and our municipal employees with the system of local environmental control and management. Preliminary agreements on this have been reached with the city administration, and with the Institute of Environmental Technologies - on the creation of an engineering center in Ufa.
Alexander Veselov,
Chairman of the Union of Ecologists of the Republic of Bashkortostan
Ufa-Dusseldorf-Duisburg
BRANCH OF A MUNICIPAL STATE INSTITUTION
"SOLAR SECONDARY SCHOOL"
"ZAVETILICHEVSKAYA SECONDARY SCHOOL"
Lesson - lecture
theme "Ecology of Germany - from the point of view of everyday life"
Completed by: Mayer Olga Erikhovna
Testaments of Ilyich, 2017
1.Introduction
2017 is the year of ecology in Russia.
The plan for the Year of Ecology includes more than 100 environmental measures. The main environmental objectives are the creation of a modern municipal solid waste (MSW) management system, the elimination of accumulated environmental damage, the development of a network of specially protected natural areas, the protection of forest resources and reforestation, as well as environmental education of citizens.
Each of these areas implies specific measures that will significantly improve the state of the region’s environment.
We must subordinate our needs to the idea of careful use of natural resources, protecting the environment from destruction and pollution. This fully applies to a foreign language, whose potential for realizing the goals of environmental education creates favorable conditions for a deeper disclosure of the individual and his relationships with the environment.
In German lessons we often discuss global environmental issues. I wanted to know in more detail how things are in the country of the language I am learning, in Germany,
This is how it appearedsubject research:“Ecology in Germany - from the point of view of everyday life »
Target: create conditions for the formation of the foundations of ecological culture, the correct attitude towards nature, towards oneself and towards other people as part of nature, towards things and materials of natural origin; to form in the younger generation environmentally appropriate behavior, a conscious, moral and aesthetic attitude towards the environment using the example of German ecology
Tasks:
- introduce ecology as a complex interdisciplinary field of human knowledge; with modern life in Germany.
Create motivation for personal participation in solving environmental problems in your region; conduct scientific experiments on your own
- to cultivate patriotic feelings, love for one’s land, the Motherland, a sense of being the owner of the country.
An object research – ecology of Germany
Subject The research is to identify the possibilities of the academic discipline “German language” in the formation of environmental education in schoolchildren.
Hypothesis research: environmental education in school educational activities in the process of teaching the German language will be effective if: German language classes contain material on the topic “Man and the Environment”; in the process of teaching German, special attention will be paid to the forms and methods of effective implementation of environmental education
Relevance. Nowadays, the problems of environmental education have come to the fore, and more and more attention is being paid to them. Why did these problems become relevant? The reason is human activity in nature, which is often illiterate, incorrect from an environmental point of view, wasteful, leading to a disruption of the ecological balance.
Novelty research: an attempt to study the problem of environmental life in Germany
When writing this work, the following were usedmethods research:
1) theoretical analysis of works devoted to this problem;
3) conversations with teachers and school students
2.Ecology - how it all began
It is impossible to ignore the fact that ecology as a science originated in Germany. The term “ecology” was introduced by the German biologist E. Haeckel (1834–1919) as the science of the relationship of living organisms with the environment.
From social activism to environmental policy in 40 years. This is how we can briefly formulate the evolution of environmental consciousness among all levels of society in Germany. It is precisely for 40 years that we, Russians, lag behind this advanced level in terms of living comfort (which includes the state of the environment)
In the 70s, German residents, who made good money from steel mills, suddenly began to think about the problems of their own health, an overly urbanized environment, excessively polluted lands and waters, and the destruction of forests. In the mid-70s of the last century, for example, fish in the Rhine completely disappeared from the river water. And then the population began to create public environmental organizations, which, through mass actions, through the press, through their deputies, began to raise environmental problems and demand their solution.
Since democratic institutions in German society were already operating successfully at that time, public opinion in 10-15 years was transformed into political and legal decisions, and then into specific programs to improve the environment, which continue to this day. So, by 1995, a “cleaner production” policy emerged in Germany. And even local multimillionaires have become imbued with this ideology, showing not only a patriotic desire to pay tribute to nature, but also supporting civil environmental initiatives. Industrial companies were given strict conditions: either you comply with the requirements for environmental protection and public health, or you pay huge fines and become uncompetitive, right up to closure.
The soil on the territory of the enterprises was saturated with heavy metals and other harmful substances, sometimes up to 3 meters, and this layer of soil had to be removed and disposed of.
The program with the lyrical name “Green and Blue” (forest and water) became one of the main programs of the city authorities. Nature conservation at the initiative of the population is a priority in the policies of municipalities, regional authorities and the federal center, and the level of public environmental control of citizens has not decreased to this day, since ecology has become a prestigious activity, and the symptoms of climate change are already evident in Europe.
Public organizations such as NABU, BUND, Greenpeace and many other organizations and initiative groups, whose activities are largely supported by the state, are actively working.
It is the public that influences the environmental image of firms and companies, the deprivation of which for “dirty” industries means absolute bankruptcy. One of the important tools for interaction between the public and authorities are public environmental councils and commissions, created either under party organizations and relevant parliamentary factions, or under the mayor, environmental agencies and even under the federal chancellor. Control over enterprises “from below” from the population, complemented by control of the authorities “from above”, is stimulated by pressure on the national government from the European Union.
3.Realities of everyday life.
Ecology in Germany means legislation, education, and the latest technologies. At the same time, ecology and economics are inseparable topics. These are general topics: efficient use of energy, waste management, continuous management of water use, etc.
Environmental education in Germany is compulsory for all primary school students. According to the program, environmental education should be based on students' everyday experiences in local contexts (for example, at school, at home). During walking tours and educational walks, children can explore the possibilities of the environment, which has emotional meaning for them. In Germany, a series of books for schoolchildren, “Umweltbücher,” is published, which teach them to understand and protect nature. This series begins with a book for little ones “meine Umweltfibel”. The primer tells about the environmental problems of the world around us in a colorful and accessible form.
In Germany, the Econetwork is widely developed, which consists of governmental and non-governmental organizations. Hundreds of thousands of people work in this field. German nature and environmental protection organizations today number over 5 million individual members (about 6% of the German population). Unions are highly respected in society; they are called “green conscience” and “nature’s advocates”.
Many private individuals participate on a voluntary basis in measures to care for biotopes or take patronage of trees or plantings (Pflanzscheiben) in the city, others donate land plots, valuable objects or property to environmental associations. About 5 million euros are allocated annually for information and educational activities and for work with the public in the field of nature conservation.
The “green” movement, which has now spread worldwide, arose and began its journey in Germany. Boys and girls from different countries actively participate in it. The Internet will help you find friends and like-minded people not only in our country, but also abroad. And the German language will be an assistant and mediator, providing an opportunity to communicate with foreign peers who also show interest in these problems.
4. Ecology in Germany - from a daily life point of view
The Germans have long realized how important the influence of the environment on people's health and life is. The importance of ecology in Germany is amazing. Back in the 90s, under the influence of the Green Party, the introduction of alternative methods of cleaning and caring for the environment began.
These, for example, were:
rational use of water,
use of environmentally friendly energy sources (solar panels, wind turbines, abandonment of nuclear power plants),
replacing conventional food products with bio-products (at a reasonable price),
waste separation (glass, plastic, compost, paper, etc.),
recycling of used products for further use of materials (das Recycling),
use of trains, both short and long distances (abandonment of intercity bus services),
high cost of travel, high price of gasoline,
use of resource-saving technologies (energy-saving lamps, etc.)
high standards for cleaning emissions from industries, vehicles, etc.
And now some details from an everyday point of view.
WATER
.
Water is expensive, so we advise you to save water if you are staying with friends or relatives. As a rule, water is included in utility bills (the cost of renting an apartment, including utilities, is called Warmmiete). There are cases when an apartment is rented without including utilities (the cost of renting an apartment, not including utilities, is called Kaltmiete). But here we will talk about the Warm contract.
Water here is calculated on average, based on consumption per person. If you have used more or less the norm, then at the end of the contract (or the year of renting the apartment) you will receive a payslip, and you will be able to understand whether you will have to pay for the excess water consumption, or you will get your money back if you saved the resource considerably.
Water in Germany can be drunk from the tap because it goes through a system
multi-stage filtration. The country's authorities are closely monitoring this.
They wash dishes in Germany, not like in Russia. First, fill the sink with hot water, adding dishwashing detergent, and then wash the dishes in this water. After this, the dishes can be rinsed, or you can not rinse them, but simply wipe them. Dishwashing detergents here are tested very carefully, so if you “eat” the remains of the detergent, you will stay alive
The main rule is to save water, because it is a finite resource on the planet.
ELECTRICITY
In Germany, everyone chooses the company that will “supply” electricity to their apartment. The choice is great, many tariffs and options. There are also companies that produce only eco-electricity using alternative energy sources. Eco-electricity costs a little more than regular electricity. Everything here is at your discretion.
One of the alternative energy sources is solar panels, as well as wind generators throughout Germany.
By the way, in Germany a large fine is imposed for the use of “Ilyich bulbs”. Many German residents install solar panels directly on the roofs of their homes, thus saving a significant amount of electricity.
In Germany, they are afraid of a repeat of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, so all environmental organizations are fighting against nuclear energy, organizing rallies and disseminating information about the dangers of nuclear energy.
This solar badge is worn by many opponents of the use of nuclear energy:
BIO food
Bio products are products without any chemicals or genetic modification.
Products marked with this icon - bio:
The products are sold in regular supermarkets. The cost of such products is not much different from “non-bio”. All products are certified, this is very strict in Germany, so you can consume them without harm or damage to your health. The stores offer a large assortment of organic food: all dairy products, meat, chocolate, canned food, jam, baked goods, vegetables, fruits and much more. In principle, you can find an alternative bio-product to any conventional product. There are also supermarkets that specialize only in organic products. When shopping there, you can eat only natural and healthy food.
Germans give preference to German products because of quality, as well as to support their own economy and environment. Here there is the concept of products “from the region”.
The Germans try to buy such products, visit various fairs and markets, where farmers sell everything “from their garden.”
HOUSEHOLD WASTE
In Germany, garbage is separated, and this procedure is mandatory here. There are separate containers for glass, paper, plastic, compost, food (which goes into animal feed), fat!, and there is also Restmüll (residual waste, that waste that does not fit into any of the categories). Germans must pay for throwing away any garbage. Throwing away Restmüll costs the most, so it is more profitable to have as little of it as possible. To do this, you need to try to separate the garbage as much as possible.
There are special yellow bags for distributing waste. They are provided free of charge by the city authorities. They can be used to dispose of any kind of waste.
Be careful when buying drinks in supermarkets, because the price tags usually indicate the Net price, excluding the bottle. If you look closely, the price tag below shows the Gross amount, including the bottle. After drinking the drink, you can easily return the bottle to any supermarket and get the cost of the bottle back. Supermarkets have machines that accept plastic and glass bottles. Bottles that have a special sign on them can be returned for 25 cents.
Therefore, after drinking a drink in Germany, do not rush to throw the bottle into a container
TRANSPORT
The transport system in the cities is very well established. Punctuality is the main rule of German transport. A one-time bus ticket costs 2.40 euros! A liter of gasoline costs about 1.40 euros here. Therefore, most German residents switch from buses and cars to bicycles. In general, there are a lot of bicycles here, both old and new. Cyclists in Germany are participants in traffic, just like motorists. They have dedicated paths (red), their own traffic lights and traffic intersections.
There are no long-distance buses in Germany. There are only passing buses from EU countries to Germany. The cheapest way is to travel by train, only by booking a ticket in advance (2-3 weeks before departure), or use an alternative option. The point of the site system: one person can give one or more rides for a fee, which is usually cheaper than public transport. You must have a passport with you if you travel outside Germany. This method is quite safe, but of course, to be on the safe side, you can buy a regular ticket for public transport and get to your destination.
It is also necessary to develop knowledge about the realities of everyday life.
Der grüne Punkt – translated from German as “Green Dot”. Many people believe that this mark is placed on the packaging of a product that has been made from recycled materials or is recyclable. In fact, the mark is placed on their products by companies that provide financial support to the German recycling program "Eco Emballage" - "Ecological Packaging" and are included in its recycling system. Outside of Germany, the sign does not have any positive meaning.
Recycled – recycling sign. In theory, this label should indicate that the product (or packaging) is made from recycled material (Recycled) and/or is recyclable. At the same time, manufacturers are recommended to explain in text under or around the sign what is meant, and also to clarify the parameters of “recycling”, for example, “Made from 70% recycled cardboard.”
We conducted a survey among students in grades 6-7 of MKOU
“Zavetilichevskaya Secondary School” 16 people took part in the survey.
4.Conclusion
National culture involves not only the assimilation of cultural knowledge (cultural facts), but also the formation of the ability and readiness to understand the mentality of native speakers of the language being studied, as well as the characteristics of the communicative behavior of the people of this country. It is important to know about the state of affairs in this area, about existing international movements, about the work that is being done to protect the environment in their regions. Children can get such information from radio and television programs, from the Internet, from newspapers and magazines not only in their native language, but also in a foreign language. With the help of the press, we could meet young ecologists from different countries and talk about their “green” actions in the name of nature conservation. Real activities that have a clear personal meaning and benefit society would contribute to the development of independent cognitive activity of students, their activity as a cognitive subject, and in mastering a foreign language.
5.References
1.
Bondareva N.F.
.Improving the conduct of extracurricular work on the subject in secondary school // Improving the methodology of teaching foreign languages in secondary school. – Leningrad, 1989.
2.
Weisbreid A.E.
. Environmental education and training in German lessons and outside of class time // Foreign languages at school. - 1997. – No. 2.
3.
Zenya L.Ya.
Nurturing the ecological culture of schoolchildren using a foreign language // Foreign languages at school. – 1990. – No. 4.
4. Websites: Proshkolu.ru; nsportal, Yandex search engine.
6. APPLICATION
Questionnaire
1. Do you think it is possible to adopt the experience of Germany and introduce some of the developments into our country?
Yes
No
Don't know
2.Do you think it is important to raise and discuss environmental issues?
Yes
No
Don't know
3.Does your school carry out environmental conservation work? Are you taking part in it?
Yes
No
Don't know
4.Are you aware of facts of barbaric attitude towards nature among your classmates and peers?
Yes
No
Don't know
5.Did you want to deal with environmental issues in an environmental class in a foreign language?
Yes
No
Don't know
