Patrick Child, Deputy Director-General of the European Commission's Directorate-General for Environment, met with the Mayor of Zagreb, Tomislav Tomasevic, on Wednesday to discuss the EU's mission for 100 climate-neutral and smart cities.

Last year, the European Commission selected Zagreb to participate in the EU’s mission for 100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030, also known as the Cities Mission.

After the meeting, the mayor announced that Zagreb has committed to adopting an action plan by September this year to achieve climate neutrality by 2030. This plan includes initiatives such as the electrification of city buses.

When asked about waste management in Zagreb, Child admitted that Croatia is struggling to meet European legislative standards in areas such as landfill, recycling and waste separation.

If Zagreb can be a pioneer in this respect and inspire other cities in Croatia, we would be delighted. We are ready to provide support through European funding programmes and the European Development Bank, said Child.

Child emphasised the discussion with the city administration about Zagreb’s strategies to become a climate-neutral city.

“Zagreb is lagging behind many European capitals when it comes to green policies, but we have made significant progress in the last two years to catch up,” the mayor explained.

Tomasevic emphasised Zagreb’s commitment to climate neutrality by improving waste management systems and promoting sustainable transport, including the conversion of the public transport company ZET’s fleet to carbon-neutral modes of transport such as electric buses.

“We are preparing to invest 300 million euros in the water supply and wastewater network and in tertiary wastewater treatment. We will soon present the project to the public and assume that 70% will be co-financed from European funds,” Tomasevic added.