Parking lots will become the main campaign platforms for participation in the Car-Free Day in the Vitebsk region

September 18, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. Parking lots will become the main campaign platforms for participation in the Car-Free Day in the Vitebsk region, the chief specialist of the Vitebsk Regional Committee for Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Tatyana Yasiulina told a BELTA correspondent. To widely involve the public and public organizations in the campaign, committee specialists and volunteers intend to distribute informational leaflets at parking lots in crowded places, calling on people to give up cars on September 22 and opt for environmentally friendly and healthy modes of transport. Video clips about the campaign will be shown on video screens in the center of Vitebsk and in large shopping centers throughout the working week. In anticipation of the Car-Free Day, raids will be conducted to identify and clear courtyards and streets of abandoned or unused vehicles. An inspection of the condition of bicycle parking facilities at retail outlets, educational institutions, and other public places is also planned as part of the ongoing events. On Car-Free Day, September 22, sports and entertainment events will be held throughout the region, with bicycles and roller skates as the main attractions. The region has over 360,000 vehicles, with the personal car fleet exceeding 250,000. According to environmentalists' estimates, this number of vehicles has released 117.9 thousand tons of pollutants into the atmosphere. The "Car-Free Day" campaign was first held in France in 1997. At that time, only about 20 cities participated in the event; in 2001, over a thousand cities from 35 countries officially joined the movement, and Belarus joined in 2008. Now, the annual campaign is held in 40 countries in Europe and other continents. On September 22, 2012, Belarus will host the annual international "Car-Free Day" campaign, organized by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection, regional committees, and district and city inspectorates for natural resources and environmental protection. -0-