site.btaDr. Lidiya Vitanova: Poor Urban Planning, Lack of Parks Are Among Adverse Factors on Human Health

The most adverse impact on people's lives is caused by poor urban infrastructure and planning, increased traffic and energy consumption, said Dr. Lidiya Vitanova on Monday, adding that overdevelopment, lack of parks and recreational facilities, and poor use of common areas are among other negative factors. "To this can be added the lack of awareness and responsibility for the urban planning problem", she said. Vitanova is actively engaged in research and consulting related to urban climate, heat island, smart cities, etc.

She holds a PhD in Climatology from Tsukuba University in Japan. The topic on which she has specialized is the increasing temperature over the past 150 years in Sofia and Sendai City, Japan. Vitanova is an author in the information platform Climateka.

The problems with Bulgarian cities

According to Vitanova, Bulgarian cities have untapped potential. She stresses that each place has its own uniqueness, which should be redesigned to be favourable for people.

"People like to see the good things, so parallel measures should be implemented quickly and in the longer term", the specialist said and reiterated the need for dialogue with citizens about the changes. According to Vitanova, there should be feedback on every action and measure implemented.

Vitanova stressed that all large cities and smaller settlements should work in parallel on the problems and methods to tackle climate change.

"We should not forget that if a problem is neglected due to insignificance in small settlements, it may lead to irreversible consequences and danger to human health in the near future", she said.

The "heat islands" are also a problem for large cities in Bulgaria. Vitanova proposes the introduction of financial incentives related to the construction of green roofs and facades to overcome this challenge. She pointed to improving the efficiency of public spaces, replacing the fleet with electric vehicles, and installing "smart technologies" by state and local governments as other options.

Good examples can be borrowed from Tokyo's zero-emission strategies, Vitanova said when asked what Japanese practices could be applied here. "Some of them are related to urban development based on the use of renewable energy", the specialist explained, adding that Japan has made progress in the standardization of zero-emission buildings during construction and the transition of existing buildings to zero-emission buildings.

Creation of environmentally friendly multi-energy plants as social infrastructure, distribution of zero emission vehicles are also among the good examples in Japan from which our country can draw experience.

"Smart transport" and its application

This week the European Commission (EC) presented proposals for more efficient and environmentally friendly transport. Among the ideas is encouraging the use of non-polluting trucks. A Commission communication explains that freight transport accounts for more than 30% of carbon pollution from economic activity. In this context, Vitanova commented on the need to develop so-called smart transport.

"This is an approach, which uses modern and innovative technologies in transport systems", she clarified. As an example, the specialist pointed to cloud computing and wireless communication based on location-based services and other tools to improve mobility.

In Bulgaria, there are already measures and solutions in place to introduce smart technologies to help with parking and traffic management. Integrated ticketing systems, use of alternative sources of transport have been introduced, Vitanova said.

The specialist added that while there is more to work on, the important thing is to continue in the direction of building a network that connects vehicles, people and urban infrastructure.

"Smart transport, as part of the smart city, helps cities use their current resources more efficiently and responsibly", Vitanova said, adding that such a policy supports the process of combating climate change and air pollution, as well as promoting a more competitive and socially inclusive urban environment.