Brussels, 23/09/2005 (Agence Europe) - The Commission has approved the financing of fifteen new environmental projects in the Mediterranean and Baltic Sea regions under the LIFE-Third countries 2005 programme. EU joint funding will amount to EUR 6,348,240, i.e. 69% of total investment (EUR 9,233,000) required by these projects.
The projects aim to improve the quality of the environment and ensure sustainable development by contributing to the creation or strengthening of political institutions, surveillance instruments, training installations, and necessary networks and databases. They cover a broad range of activities: - waste management, prevention and reduction of industrial pollution, and development of environmental regulation. They will be implemented in Turkey, Russia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Israel, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia.
LIFE-Third countries is one of the three sections of the LIFE programme, the financial instrument for the environment and nature conservation that supports projects in the EU but also in a number of candidate countries, those on the road to EU membership or EU neighbours. The summary of the fifteen projects selected may be consulted on the web address: http: //europa.eu.int/comm/environment/life/project/index.htm).