The meeting was convened to approve a roadmap for the partner cities in the project, including Łódź and Cracow. The roadmap set down activities towards the elimination of household items containing mercury. The consortium pools the forces of the following partners: Lodz University of Technology (project leader), Lviv Polytechnic National University (Ukraine), Ivano-Frankivsk Academy of Ivan Zolotoustoho (Ukraine), Innovation HIVE - Kypseli Kainotomias (Greece), Universidade De Evora (Portugal), Universita di Camerino (Italy), and Stanisław Staszic AGH University of Science and Technology in Cracow.
In a letter sent to the participants, AGH Vice-Rector, prof. Rafał Wiśniowski, drew attention to the fact that the issue addressed in the project is consistent with the activities of the AGH University of Science and Technology regarding environmental protection, a continuation of the work of renowned geologist prof. Walery Goetel, former rector of AGH, dr hab. inż. Ewa Adamiec, prof. of AGH, discussed the activities of the university, including these by the Department of Geology, Geophysics and Environmental Protection. The objectives of the project and the tasks that the consortium faces were outlined by the project leader, prof. Volodymyr Mosorov of Lodz University of Technology.
Next, dr hab inż. Jerzy Górecki, prof. of AGH, elaborated on the problems of elevated mercury content in the environment and how organisms contribute to the contamination, emphasizing in particular human activity.
During the second day, the attendees were hosted by the representatives of the Office of the City of Cracow and the Municipal Sanitation Works Sp. z o. o: Violetta Zyguła, Head of the Department of Municipal Waste Management and Sanitation of the Department of Municipal Economy and Climate, Marek Kabaciński, Vice President of the Board of Directors and Operations Director of MPO, and Tomasz Chrustek, Head of the Department of Bulky Waste Disposal and Auxiliary Services. The Vice President of MPO outlined the solutions and problems associated with waste management policy that a city as large as Cracow faces. The participants were particularly interested in those solutions that addressed the disposal of hazardous waste, potentially containing mercury, i.e., electronic devices and fluorescent lamps. The attendees recognized the Cracow Eco-box and the Electrobrigade to be very valuable good practices that should be included in the forthcoming roadmap for the elimination of mercury-containing products.
Then the time came for the project partners to present their current solutions and proposals for awareness-raising endeavors in their cities. Dr. hab. inż. Marcin Zych, prof. of AGH, reported on Cracow, dr inż. Joanna Jojczyk talked about Łódź, dr inż. Elvira Dzhumelia discussed Lviv, dr Nataliya Marchuk - Ivano-Frankivsk, dr Cristina Casadidio - Camerino , Maria Skoufi talked about Larissa, and finally, prof. Miguel Elias outlined the activities and plans of Evora.
The project is co-funded by the European Union (Life+) and the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management.