08 September 2010, 16:34
Mykola Tomenko: The Carpathian Region involves Many Countries, but has only One Heart - the Carpathian Mountains
Today, Mykola Tomenko attended the opening of the international workshop conference "Sustainable Development of Carpathian Mountains and other Mountainous Regions of Europe" in Uzhhorod. M.Tomenko greeted the attendants of the conference. He drew attention to the growing importance of the Carpathian region due to the global natural, climatic and environmental changes. "While the Carpathians used to be metaphorically called ‘the lungs of Europe´, now these mountains deserve a title ‘a green heart of Europe´," he stated.
Considering this, a new strategy of development of the Carpathian region should be drafted. "None of the countries of the Carpathian region can elaborate and implement this strategy by itself. Therefore, joint inter-state, trans-national projects of environmental, recreational, tourist development of the region should be studied," the Deputy Chairman stated.
Mykola Tomenko assured the participants that all the issues raised at the conference would be fixed in the final provisions, scrutinized and supported by all the parliamentary factions. "A new mission of the Carpathians is well-known, as these mountains are not only a center of biodiversity, one of the main gathering grounds and the largest forest area in Europe, a wonderful place with remarkable landscapes, but also a green heart of Europe," he stressed. "Metaphorically speaking, the Carpathian region involves many countries, but has only one heart - the Carpathians", Mykola Tomenko stated.