The traditional spring cleaning campaign ‘For a More Beautiful Ljubljana 2014’ runs in Ljubljana from 22 March to 22 April 2014.

The basic goal of the For a More Beautiful Ljubljana 2014 campaign is to give a thorough spring clean to functional areas across the City of Ljubljana, and those taking part include Departments within the City Administration, the City’s District Authorities, public companies united within Ljubljana Public Holdings, City of Ljubljana public institutes and various Ljubljana societies.

The central goal of this year’s campaign will also be the mitigation of natural disaster consequences caused by a glaze ice catastrophe that hit Ljubljana in the beginning of February.

The rehabilitation of glaze-affected areas runs according to the adopted plan. The works in the urban areas of the City of Ljubljana are projected to be concluded by the mid-April, followed by the castle hill by the end of May and the park by the end of the autumn. In the scope of glaze ice damage rehabilitation, 178 trees will be planted anew across the city’s green areas and avenues to compensate for the glaze damage.In the scope of the For a More Beautiful Ljubljana campaign, the Snaga public company will organize a permanent duty team to take care of waste transport who will respond to calls from cleaning campaign participants. They will be also provided with 8,000 plastic bags and 8,000 single-use gloves.

Simultaneously, the Department for Commercial Activities and Traffic of the City of Ljubljana Administration will also organize and manage the regular implementation of maintenance programmes focusing mainly on the intensive cleaning operations in streets, pedestrian and cyclist subways, passageways and arcades, water-washing of roads, plateaus and squares, arranging of streets, parks and trees, renewal of road markings, road scraping and repair of damage caused by winter services on green areas.

The Ljubljana Tourism public institute will join forces by organizing the main event – traditional cleaning of the River Ljubljanica – which has become a highly popular tourist event alongside its ecological mission. The campaign will see participation from divers, members of the Vivera society for underwater activities, members of other diving clubs affiliated to the Slovenian Diving Association as well as other societies: for environmental protection, fishing, fire brigades, rescue and boatmen among others. They are to work together on Saturday 19 April 2014 to clean the bed of the Ljubljanica between Špica and the Dragon Bridge. Rubbish taken out of the water will be put on show as a reminder to passers-by on Čevljarski most (the Shoemakers' Bridge) from 10am onwards.

Ljubljana Tourism will again be carrying out their traditional giveaway of pot plants to residents. On Čevljarski most and on Hribarjevo and Cankarjevo nabrežje (the Hribar and Cankar Embankments) between 11am and 1pm on Saturday 19 April 2014 there is also to be a cultural-entertainment event where ‘Povodni mož’ (the Underwater Man) goes among walkers dressed in the clothing of the bourgeoisie searching for his true love Urška. When he finds her, they will jump into the Ljubljanica together.

Clean-up campaigns, coordinated by the Ljubljana Tourism public institute, will witness the participation of all active tourist associations from the City of Ljubljana area. Members of tourist societies will conduct around 100 cleaning actions.

The Department for Environmental Protection of the City of Ljubljana Administration implements projects “for a more beautiful Ljubljana” throughout the whole year. Among other things, it continues with a systematic removal of illegally discarded construction and asbestos waste. The department observes that the amount of illegally dumped waste has decreased in the recent years. It will also carry on with its annual action of removing the invasive non-native species on the city grounds. The most prominent invasive species is harmful Ambrosia artemisiifolia or Common Ragweed, while the attention will be also paid to Fallopia japonica or commonly known as Japanese knotweed and Solidago gigantea or Giant Goldenrod.

In the scope of the UHI (Urban Heat Island) international project the following activities are foreseen:

• Arrangement of pocket parks in streets with two-sided parallel parking areas (four pocket parks are projected. Each of them, in the size of one parking space, will replace the parking place with green and urban equipment).

• A small house with a green roof for green exercise (a prototype of a small house with a green roof is to be constructed at the Prule children’s playground to provide adults with a facility for physical exercises. Parents and caregivers accompanying their children to the playgrounds will be able to stretch their muscles and turn the inactive waiting into relaxation and shaping of their physique, and thus set a good example to their children).

• Tree planting (the Labyrinth of Art will gain 110 new trees, the Posavskega Street will be richer for 11 specimens, while 7 new trees will decorate the Mariborska Street – this will contribute to the expansion of green areas in our city).

On the World Water Day (Saturday, 22 March, 2014) under the slogan “Water and Energy”, the VO-KA public company will organize educational and entertainment event entitled “WATER IS LIFE” for children who are, like water, always full of energy. The event, which will see the participation of 3rd to 8th grade pupils from Ljubljana elementary schools, represents one of the activities promoting awareness among the youngest target public groups to awaken the sense of preservation and protection of the most important natural sources.

All are warmly welcome to take part in the For a More Beautiful Ljubljana cleaning campaign 2014. Cleaning campaigns are a friendly and healthy form of socialising, in addition to raising awareness about waste management and promoting positive attitudes to the environment.