Luxembourg is looking for urban farmers
A new pilot project in the capital will try out multi-faceted farming in a built-up setting as a source of food and environmental awareness
Many EU cities used the occasion of European Mobility Week to try out car-free Sundays, Source: Dana Marin / Unsplash
During European Mobility Week, many EU cities instituted car-free Sundays, becoming more accessible for public transport and cycling
Last Sunday, Brussels instituted a no-cars Sunday to mark the European Mobility Week, between 16 and 22 September. Between 9:30 AM and 7:00 PM cars were prohibited from driving in a lot of the city, giving way to public transport and bikes instead.
During that time, Bruxelles Environement, the city’s environment agency noted a 90% reduction in nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), which are both toxic substances emitted by internal combustion engines.
Additionally, the city also saw a significant reduction in noise levels, making for a calm and quiet Sunday. This also highlights a point urban planners have been making in recent years, that cities are not noisy, cars are noisy.
According to a report from Bruxelles Environment on 19 September, the busiest axes for travel in the city were affected the most by the drop in emissions. At the Ars-Loi station, for example, the concentration of nitrogen oxide and nitrogen dioxide dropped by 80% compared to regular weekends.
Compared to weekdays, the drop is even steeper, with about 90% for nitrogen oxide and 86% for nitrogen dioxide.
Furthermore, background noise levels also dropped around the Belgian capital. The results were compared at sound measuring stations near roads and highways. For example, near the E411 in Auderghem and near the E40 in Woluwe-Saint-Lambert, sound measuring stations registered a 90% drop in noise levels.
For less noisy streets like Avenue Houba de Strooper and Chaussée de Wavre in Auderghem, the drop was less pronounced, though still significant – at 68%.
Authorities point out that yearly emissions have been going down since 2019, by about 10% per year. However, there is still a long way to go, since according to the European Environment Agency, in 2018, Belgium registered around 8,900 deaths caused by air pollution.
Officials from the archipelago paid a visit to Lower Saxony (Germany) to get acquainted with the power of hydrogen trains
After the Berlin Constitutional Court declared the September 2021 local election invalid, the city is getting ready for a re-do
The digital transformation has reached the geographical dimension
The digital transformation has reached the geographical dimension
Search for health, search for well-being - in any sense and category of these terms
The Agri-Tech centre in Osnabrück has a lab, workshop and test field all rolled into one
Officials from the archipelago paid a visit to Lower Saxony (Germany) to get acquainted with the power of hydrogen trains
Eleven museums have united their efforts to do concrete analyses on emissions and share know-how on how to bring down emissions
It is meant as a response and companion piece to the annual San Remo festival - Italy’s premier pop music event
Eleven museums have united their efforts to do concrete analyses on emissions and share know-how on how to bring down emissions
The city will kick off its stint as the European Capital of Culture for 2023 on 17 February
It is meant as a response and companion piece to the annual San Remo festival - Italy’s premier pop music event
The new itineraries are part of the DiscoverEU programme, which lets 18-year-olds travel by train between important European sites
The European Commission has published its first progress report charting the achievements of the socio-cultural movement that combines beauty, inclusion and sustainability
The 2023 edition of the creative initiative promises to be bigger, bolder and more inclusive
Veni Markovski’s take on dealing with disinformation in the European Union's poorest country – Bulgaria
A conversation with the mayor of Utrecht on the occasion of her mission to COP27
A conversation with the President of the European Committee of the Regions, about energy, climate change and the underrated importance of cohesion policy