Summary of newspapers of the previous day – 23.09. 2008

Amendment of act on agriculture aims at Parliament

The Chamber of Deputies of Parliament of the Czech Republic will judge a proposal of amendment of act on agriculture in the first reading at its Wednesday´s meeting. According to the minister Petr Gandalovič a main aim of the introduced norm is to motivate farmers to keep agricultural practice which is regardful of the nature and the landscape. According to his words the novel brings tightening and better effectiveness of control systems. In fact it is dealt with introduction of a point system principle. If a farmer does not fulfil set conditions for a long time, he/she will loose subsidies. An important part of the novel is also an accounting of landscape elements.

European Mobility Week 2008 was successful in spite of bad weather

On Monday a campaign European Mobility Week ended in the CR and all the European Union. It was about to remind inhabitants of towns that it is possible to avoid cars. This year´s motto “Clear air for all” symbolized the current problem of towns – polluted atmosphere (Norms in air quality are exceeded in two thirds of European towns) and its influence on human health. Regarding the fact that the pollution in towns is caused mainly by transportation, it is essential to find ways to reduce emissions and to create a pleasant place to live from towns. This cultural campaign offers citizen a way to solve the transportation burden in towns in non-violent form.

Farmers are frightened by low purchase prices of cereals

Farmers in Liberec region consider the current situation on cereals market as very bad. They suffer from extreme low prices for which they sell their products. At present purchase prices hardly cover farmers´ costs. “It is a tragedy, moreover, we have some unofficial reports that prices will go still lower. It could even flummox some firms”, a vice-chairman of the Regional Agrarian Chamber Jiří Teplý complained. While farmers got 5500 crowns for a ton of feeding cereals in the spring and for the same amount of food wheat even six thousand; prices decreased to half roughly a month and half ago.

Memorandum opens way for support of power savings an d renewable resources in households

The Minister of Environment Martin Bursík and the ambassador of Japan in the CR Hideaki Kumazawa signed a Memorandum on understanding between the CR and Japan today. The Memorandum is a basic requirement of Japan side for a successful realization of sale of emission units in frame of flexible mechanisms of Kjójó protocol. A sale yield from emission units will be an income of the State Environment Fund of CR (SFŽP) which will be able maybe at the beginning of 2009 to open new subsidy programs for households focused on power savings in residential buildings and installation of renewable power sources.