Tbilisi: The Government of Georgia has approved the 2024-2026 Air Quality Management Plan. The plans has been approved for for Tbilisi Agglomeration.
The goal of the 2024-2026 plan for the management of atmospheric air quality for Tbilisi agglomeration is to reduce pollution caused by problematic harmful substances in Tbilisi Municipality. It also aimed to maintain the levels of other harmful substances within the norm.
The document presents a 3-year action plan describing the activities to be implemented, agencies responsible for implementation, performance indicators, deadlines and budget of municipality as well.
The action plan includes 4 main tasks reduction of atmospheric air pollution by solid particles in Tbilisi agglomeration, as well as reduction of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) emissions, improvement of the assessment of the impact of air pollution on human health and the quality of atmospheric air and raising public awareness about the protection of atmospheric air.
The ambient air quality management plan is a sectoral policy document, the purpose of which is to improve the ambient air quality through result-oriented measures. The draft of the decree of the Government of Georgia was prepared with the involvement of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia and other government agencies, the Parliament of Georgia, Tbilisi City Hall and civil society representatives.
The European Union also supported the project. Many discussions were held in which Georgian and European experts participated to discuss its success as well.
The 2024-2026 air quality management plan for the Tbilisi agglomeration was prepared under the Law of Georgia “On Ambient Air Protection” and the Resolution of the Government of Georgia on “Approving the Rules for Development, Monitoring and Evaluation of Policy Documents.”
The plan also includes issues provided by other national strategic documents and international obligations of Georgia. It should be noted that developing air quality management plans is the best practice for solving the air pollution problem in EU countries. In recent years, pollution has become the biggest threat to the environment. It is also the biggest reason behind global warming and climate change.
