Energy efficiency is a culture. A culture of responsible consumption of resources. Zhytomyr welcomed the participants of the European initiative Covenant of Mayors East during their working visit.

Deputy heads of communities and heads of the public water supply and disposal utilities were present during the meeting. “We cannot but care about energy conservation. I admit that these steps do not have an immediate effect. Sometimes it seems that the projects are in ‘standby’ mode. But this is not the case. Zhytomyr has chosen its movement vector; this is energy efficiency. It sounds ambitious, and our efforts are aimed at consistently bringing the city and community closer to energy independence”, said Serhii Sukhomlyn at the beginning of the meeting.

As the full-scale aggression began, all communities realised the importance of energy savings. The meeting participants learned about the successful practices of Zhytomyr, such as a complete switchover to 100% LED street lighting and the reconstruction of water and sewage treatment facilities. “Such purification technologies are state-of-the-art and are used only in five European countries. Projects on thermal modernization of public buildings are also ongoing in our community, and we intend to continue. The processing of solid household waste into RDF fuel and the production of biogas at sewage treatment plants are only part of the projects that are planned to be implemented in Zhytomyr”, the mayor noted.

“The sustainable management system is crucial. I will explain why. Approved strategic documents make it easier to stay on course and to work in a certain direction. Moreover, it is important to have developed strategic documents in the community when attracting any funds from donors or creditors,” says First Deputy Mayor Svitlana Olshanska.

“First of all, teamwork is evident in the projects implemented in Zhytomyr and the projects the city is implementing now. For our part, we provide methodological assistance to cities. At each stage of developing and implementing the local climate and energy policy in Zhytomyr, we meet with different specialists, including energy managers, the Department of Economics, the City Development Agency, and the city’s public utilities in order to work out everything in detail. Although they are independent, legally independent, they all work toward the same objective, so the effect is obvious”, Oksana Kysil, National Expert of the Covenant of Mayors East project in Ukraine, noted.

The city’s key priorities set out in the Concept of integrated city development until 2030 include the achievement of European energy efficiency and energy saving standards, the development of renewable energy sources, and the use of cogeneration technologies.

“I was happy to communicate and share our experience. The more communities get involved and implement energy-efficient technologies, the faster we can move toward post-war recovery. I want to thank Oksana Kysil, the National Expert of the Covenant of Mayors East, for initiating such a meeting!” Serhii Sukhomlyn said.