World Environment Day
Since the Constitution in 1976 and the subsequent ones, environmental management in Cuba has been the responsibility of the State, and even the first one emerged just four years before June 5, World Environment Day, proclaimed on December 15, 1972, by the General Assembly of the United Nations.
The recounting of its actions shows a generalized boom in conservation, preservation, maintenance, and development of the environment, based on popular participation in fulfilling its objectives, according to many consulted experts.
Such an approach is vital in its implementation, considering the existence of a national competition to determine the winning province of its celebrations, which, in fact, implements an evaluation system by the governing body, the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Environment (CITMA).
It is also evident that the headquarters of its central activities has been won by the vast majority of the 14 provinces of the country, except for Mayabeque—one of the youngest—Santiago de Cuba, and the special municipality Isla de la Juventud, although they participate and do not renounce their eligibility.
Sancti Spíritus obtained it this year for the third time, announced Armando Rodríguez Batista, Minister of Citma, to the Cuban News Agency, emphasizing the scientific foundation of its management, shaped by the State Plan for Climate Change Adaptation, known as "Tarea Vida," one of the few of its kind in the world.
Master Leonel Díaz Camejo, head of the mission of this organization in that central province, 384 kilometers from Havana, summarized the reasons for their achievement, contained in a voluminous report.
They have 17 protected areas, 13 of which are certified and have corresponding administrative councils. They updated the management plans for four, the Executive Committee of the Council of Ministers approved three more, and they prepared the dossiers for two others and additional ones for category changes.
They reduced the microplastic pollution index and increased the use of plastics in durable goods, including a nationwide collection system that transforms them into furniture, baskets, cages, and plastic wood for roofing.
This includes greenhouses, walkways for beaches and hotels, wheelchair repairs, and stretchers for public health, accessible to the general population.
Innovation in the transition of the energy matrix in urban mobility includes a project that increases electric transportation in the city, the establishment of photovoltaic stations, and water supply pumps for communities.
Additionally, Cuba is undertaking the National Program on Biological Diversity, which defines prioritized objectives, goals, and action lines until 2050 to preserve landscapes, ecosystems, species, and genes, adopted by the Council of Ministers of the Republic on July 24 of the previous year.
Its long-term projection includes measures to reduce biodiversity loss, contributing significantly to national security and the prosperous and sustainable development of the economy and society.
