Nine Western Balkan mayors have signed a declaration to undertake voluntary measures aimed at reducing air pollution in their cities and municipalities, most of which are located in areas with coal mines or coal-fired power plants.

The declaration was signed during the recent Energy Community Just Transition Forum, under an initiative launched by the Energy Community Secretariat and supported by the Hungarian Western Balkans Green Center (WBGC), according to a statement by the Secretariat.

Measures will focus on residential heating, industry, and traffic

The Clean Air Regions Initiative (CARI) focuses on the most critical sources of air pollution such as domestic heating, industry, and traffic, encouraging regions and communities to take action in the field of air quality on a voluntary basis, reads the statement.

CARI remains open to other interested municipalities

The nine signatories are Banovići, Kakanj, Lukavac, Maglaj, and Tuzla in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bitola in North Macedonia, Pljevlja in Montenegro, and the Serbian cities of Novi Sad and Niš, but CARI remains open to other interested municipalities, according to the statement.

The participating cities and municipalities, with the support of the Secretariat and the WBGC, will strive to develop, adopt, and implement local air quality action plans with ambitious policies and measures, share experiences, and learn about progress and achievements in other regions and municipalities.