Sectors	Environment
EU Acquis Chapters	Environment
EU funds	97 673 €
Implementation period	2010 - 2024
Categories	Climate action ;  Digital ;  Civil society;  Gender (Mouse hover to see significance)

Environment is a high ranking issue on the European agenda and increasingly so with regard to its interventions in BiH. The BiH and the European Unions' strategic documents stress the importance of proper implementation of the environmental acquis. While the official responsibility for compliance lies with the BiH authorities, the NGO community has a very important role to complement the work of the administration by signalling infractions, collecting of information, coordinating the pilot project and educating citizens about their rights and obligations. BiH environmental NGOs have developed considerably over the past decade. Further support to their capacity building and know how improvements has been recognised as valuable for their becoming full and complementary partners of the administration in implementation of the environmental acquis. The European Union has recognised those needs, and provided series of development projects to contribute to encouragement of the partnership between governmental and non-governmental sectors with the aim of effective implementation of EU standards in environment in BiH. In that respect, this European Union project aimed at contributing to reduction and better regulation of use of polyethylene bags and introducing sales tax on importing and manufacturing other types of plastic bags that make negative effects to natural resources and environment. Also, this project targeted enhancement of public policies to support use and production of bags made from bio-degradable materials. Also, we intended to increase the awareness of citizens on harm associated with the use of plastic bags through series of public campaigns and events but also to strengthen capacities of ecological organisations in BiH in the field of public advocacy, public relations and monitoring, to be more successful in acting as “watch dog” actors on monitoring of implementation of strategies, laws, actions plans, etc.

With the European Union funding, this project had significant impact on public policies promulgated by BH authorities which regulate production, import and circulation of plastic bags, with an aim of decreasing their use and reducing pollution of the environment. Also, we helped establishing incentive mechanisms for support to BH companies in the process of transition to technology of production of bio-degradable bags and for the support of other initiatives in the field of environmental protection. Our project made BiH citizens informed about necessity of decreasing harmful effect of plastic bags on the environment and motivated them to make their own contribution to the success of the campaigns implemented in various locations in BiH, in the sense of non-use of plastic bags. The work of ecological NGOs in BiH is raised to a higher level, in the sense of its more significant coalition work and their contribution to more environment friendly regulations and public policies in the field of environmental protection. By such actions, we contributed to reducing pollution in BiH and improving quality of living in BiH through improvement of legal environment and overall cooperation between civil society organisations and governments in BiH.