We would like to update you on the activities carried out by our association since our last mailing in June 2020. Interested persons are invited to subscribe to our newsletter via the website of Pro Danube International.
In order to interact more efficiently with the industry and to provide information in real time, Pro Danube International has recently launched new interactive communication channels via social media. We cordially invite you to like and follow us on Facebook and Instagram by clicking on the icons below.
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Boatmasters frequently sailing on the Danube in the immediate vicinity of Novi Sad contacted Pro Danube International to check with the responsible Serbian authorities whether the fairway conditions and navigation rules were changed after the installation of the new bridge. This is all the more important since the newly created fairway conditions allow the use of this section with convoys that have their size conforming to class VI. Nevertheless, some regulations - most of them valid during construction times - appear to be still in force. According to these requirements, executing the splitting of the convoys remains even under the new circumstances mandatory. These procedures result in more time consumption and a much higher level of pollution. Up until now, Pro Danube received an unofficial answer stating that the splitting of convoys is, since the end of June 2020, not necessary anymore. As soon as we will receive a written official statement, we will immediately announce our members.
Pro Danube is happy to announce that two key transport projects - FAIRway works! in the Rhine-Danube Corridor and Preparing FAIRway 2 works in the Rhine-Danube Corridor - were among the selected ones to be financed via the Connecting Europe Facility. For both, Pro Danube and several of its members provided a letter of support and will follow the proceedings of the actions. We will - as in the currently ongoing phase - provide our input and feedback during the entire implementation process of the projects.
- FAIRway works! in the Rhine-Danube Corridor: The upgrade of a lock in Serbia will reduce waiting times for vessels along the entire Rhine-Danube Corridor, while the upgrade of three mooring places in Austria will increase traffic and work safety, plus allow better planning of travel and rest times. A more efficient inland waterways system will help increase the sustainability of Europe’s transport system.
- Preparing FAIRway 2 works in the Rhine-Danube Corridor: This project will improve conditions along the Serbian-Croatian stretch of the Danube, benefiting operators from all countries using this inland waterway. Activities include finalising the functionalities of a transnational monitoring system, defining the future involvement of stakeholders, in particular from the shipping system, and analysing requirements for mooring places.
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1. PDI represented at the General Assembly of Pro Danube Austria
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With a high number of its members in attendance, Pro Danube Austria held its annual General Assembly in Schallaburg, Austria on 18 June. PDI was represented by its Chairman, Mr. Herfried Leitner. Underlying the excellent cooperation between the two entities in promoting IWT as a safe, efficient and reliable mode of transport, Mr. Leitner made a detailed presentation on PDI's new projects and foreseen activities as well as on PDI's involvement in representing the sector's interest during the COVID-19 crisis.
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2. DIONYSUS: start of a new promising transnational collaboration
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As a result of the collaboration process between port administrations and operators, business associations, academia and national authorities of the Danube riparian countries, the DTP funded DIONYSUS project officially started on 1 July 2020. Under the lead of Pro Danube Romania, the DIONYSUS project is a follow-up of the DAPhNE project, having the core objective to address main regional challenges in port infrastructure governance and planning in order to facilitate the integration of the Danube Region into smart and sustainable multi-modal transport chains.
Pro Danube Management, in its capacity as project partner, is looking forward to further strengthen the efficient cooperation already established in previously implemented DTP projects like DANTE, DAPhNE and GRENDEL to actively promote IWT as a reliable alternative to other modes of transport.
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3. New marking vessel deployed on the Hungarian section of the Danube
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The new vessel is part of a three-member fleet, which will be used by the Hungarian water directorates of Győr, Budapest and Baja. It will be deployed to mark the safe depth routes for ships by placing buoys. Due to their flat bottom and small draft, this vessel can also be deployed where larger ships would be in danger to strand. The vessel is an output of the FAIRway Danube CEF project where Pro Danube is part of the Advisory Group.
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4. COMPETING: release of the third newsletter
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The third newsletter of the COMPETING containing updated information on the most important milestones reached so far and on the future planning of the project was recently released.
The newsletter is available for download here.
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5. Public Consultation on Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy
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The European Green Deal includes an ambitious target to reduce transport-related greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2050. The European Commission intends to adopt a comprehensive strategy to meet this target and ensure that the EU transport sector is fit for a clean, digital and modern economy.
The public consultation is open until 23 September 2020. We kindly invite our members to provide their input/feedback.
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6. A revised EUSDR Action Plan has been recently released
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A major step in EUSDR’s life: the revised EUSDR Action Plan became officially final on 06.04.2020. It was transmitted to the European Parliament, the Council, the EESC and the Committee of the Regions. The next step aims to bring the EUSDR forward, with embedding it into the post-2020 programmes, with a new EUSDR governance paper, and with an enforced cooperation with the other macro-regional strategies.
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7. A draft of the Partnership Proposal for Zero-Emmission Waterborne Transport was recently published
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Amid growing global and European societal pressure to resolve issues related to climate change, air pollution and the degradation of the world’s oceans, political and regulatory attention has been increasingly directed towards waterborne transport, due to this mode of transport’s high environmental and climate impact. The European Green Deal, the Paris Agreement Objectives, the Initial IMO Strategy on the reduction of GHG emissions from ships, and the CCNR Ministerial Mannheim Declaration are a number of key policy developments which provide a clear objective towards zero-emission waterborne transport.
The Open Consultation on Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda of the candidate Co-Programmed Partnership Zero-Emission Waterborne Transport can be accessed here.
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- 29 September 2020: GRENDEL: Second Know-How Transfer Event on the Modernisation of the Danube Fleet, Budapest, Hungary
- 30 September 2020: GRENDEL: Third Public Consultation, Budapest, Hungary
- 12-15 October 2020: European Week of Regions and Cities 2020, Brussels, Belgium
- 14-15 October 2020: Danube Business Talks 2020, Linz, Austria
- 28-29 October 2020: GRENDEL: Strategy Validation Workshop, 5th Consortium Meeting & Final Event, Vienna, Austria
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