A City with Character

Panorama talks with Józef Rojek, the Mayor of Tarnów and Jacek Łabno, Deputy Mayor responsible for environmental protection and communal investments, about the successes and problems of the city.

- Mister Mayor, Tarnów was one of the first cities in Poland to  adopt a long-term development strategy.
- Yes, at the beginning of our term, we commenced work on a "Strategy for Sustainable Development in Tarnów for the years 2000-2015", which set as top priorities economic development, the improvement of the quality of life in the city, environmental protection, pro-ecological education, and the establishment in Tarnów of a service center for southeastern Małopolska.
- The local government has placed emphasis on ecology.
- We have made significant outlays on pro-ecological investments. The condition of the environment has been improved with the help of city authorities and industrial plants. At present, we are about to complete work on a program for environmental protection in our city designed for the next 15 years. We are placing special emphasis on pro-ecological education directed mainly at children and youth, which is being conducted by means of numerous initiatives taken up by educational institutions. We have made several major pro-ecological investments, for example a program for the use of non-conventional sources of energy.

- What are you most proud of?
- We have solved the problem of low pollutant emission to the air in housing estates by closing 17 boiler houses fueled by coal. Currently, we are about to complete a similar program for educational institutions. The development strategy for Tarnów provides for measures related to the use of non-conventional sources of energy. Thanks to this project, the Institute for Ecodevelopment has distinguished Tarnów with the title "Our Municipality Protects the Climate". As far as water and sewerage management is concerned, we have modernized a sewage treatment plant and built collecting pipes transporting sewage to the treatment plant. In addition, we have regulated watercourses, and thereby improved the flood prevention system in Tarnów.
 The regulation of issues related to waste management constitutes one of the major achievements of the City Board. We have modernized a municipal waste landfill, where an effluent pretreatment plant and composting plant have been built and a sector has been sealed.  We

have equipped the landfill with modern machinery and equipment indispensable for properly piling up and composting waste. In 1993, we introduced selective collection of waste in the city. For a year, a program for selective collection of waste "at the source" has operated in Tarnów.
 Winning a prize in a contest entitled "Friendly to the Environment" organized under the patronage of the President of Poland was one of our largest successes. In the year 2000, Tarnów was a laureate in the category of cities with a population above 30,000. Apart from Tarnów, only four other cities of similar size were granted the award.
- Tarnów is famous for educating the public on  environmental protection.
The Department for Environmental Protection at the City Hall in Tarnów, in cooperation with several other organizations, has run activities related to pro-ecological education of citizens, including programs related to selective collection of waste, the promotion of energy conservation, and environmental protection.
- What measures and investments are you planning for the near future?
- As far as ecology is concerned, for the years 2001-2004, Tarnów authorities have planned to implement a program for the disposal of asbestos waste in the city. The program consists of co-financing and organizing disassembly of construction elements containing asbestos, including their transportation and disposal in accordance with the binding regulations, that will not endanger people or the environment.  In the field of sewage management and water protection, we have planned the expansion of the municipal sewerage network. Moreover, we intend to continue the modernization of the municipal landfill. In 2001, works will be continued in public parks.
 In addition, we intend to improve the condition of sports and recreation facilities; we will complete the construction of an indoor swimming pool and modernize existing ones.
 Moreover, we are placing strong emphasis on the development of housing construction and are preparing construction sites for economic investments. Last, but not least, we would like to stress that Tarnów is a city friendly not only to the environment, but also to investors.