Pilot Project Summary - Croatia Osijek, Croatia: Osijek Water Forum – Enhancing public involvement in waste water management NGO: Green Osijek Ecological Association Project Leader: Jasmin Sadikovic Project Background In Osijek, Croatia, 500,000 l of waste water is pumped almost directly into the River Drava, untreated, every day. Sometime in the future, a treatment plant will be built – but its structure and function relative to environmental and human health remain unformulated and thus a source of some concern for Osijek residents. In nearby Cepin, citizens are having their own problems. Before 2002, the Cepin Oil Factory pumped its wastewater into drainage canals, influencing Cepin residents’ agricultural production and drinking water. By alerting the local and national media, ecological NGO Green Osijek put a stop to it. But current information is locked behind plant doors. Indeed, the region lacks waste water management, civic transparency, and public participation in environmental decision-making. Project Activities Green Osijek is undertaking several activities to combat this environmental inaccessibility: 1. Establish the Osijek Water Forum for Osijek communication on water issues by: conducting three roundtables to identify stakeholders; during which time mechanisms will be developed to ensure public involvement; and protocols will be set to establish the regular conduct of Forum activities. 2. Develop a public outreach poster to raise awareness about existing pollution problems, possible solutions, and the need for a wastewater treatment plant by: working with the Osijek town and local water authorities to establish content; and disseminating said poster to public institutions, schools, NGO’s, etc. 3. Engage in media outreach to familiarize the media, and thus the public, about ongoing project activities by: working with a Green Osijek member who is also a journalist of a daily paper in the region; and providing regular project updates to the media. 4. Rally the public by participating in International Water Day on March 22, 2006 by: providing material on water-saving activities and how to access water-related information; and inviting other water-related institutions to also participate in Water Day. Green Osijek hopes that these activities will fuel public participation in the decision-making so that activities like the ongoing construction of a waste water treatment plant will encounter and respond to public concerns.

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