Signing Ceremony, Moldova Environmental Infrastructure Project

News Release No 01/08.07-MCO
23 August 2007

SIGNING CEREMONY
Global Environment Facility Trust Fund Grant Agreement
between the Government of Moldova and
theInternational Bank for Reconstruction and Development
for
the MOLDOVA ENVIRONMENTAL INFRASTRUCTIURE PROJECT

AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVES FOR THE SIGNING PROCEDURE:

Mrs. Melanie Marlett – World Bank Country Manager for Moldova, in the name and on behalf of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, acting as an implementing agency of the Global Environment Facility

Mr. Mihail Pop – Minister of Finance, on behalf of the Government of Moldova

TOTAL AMOUNT OF THE GRANT: US$4.562 million

This is grant provided by The Global Environment Facility (GEF). GEF is a mechanism for providing new and additional grant and concessional funding to meet the agreed incremental costs of measures to achieve agreed global environmental benefits in the four focal areas: climate change; biological diversity; international waters; and ozone layer depletion. GEF also supports the work of the global agreements to combat desertification and eliminate persistent organic pollutants. The World Bank is one of GEF’s implementing agencies and supports countries in preparing GEF co-financed projects and supervises their implementation.

WORLD BANK APPROVAL: May 29, 2007

OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT: The project, which will be implemented by the World Bank, will assist the Government of Moldova in treating Soroca’s municipal wastewater within more global environmental objectives of improving the quality of Nistru River, that separates Moldova and Ukraine. The project will also pioneer innovative and low-cost constructed wetlands to reduce the nutrient loads on the Nistru and the Black Sea. The objectives of the project are to (i) improve the quality of sanitation services in Soroca; (ii) reduce the discharge of pollutants, including nutrients, from Soroca municipal sources that flow into the Nistru river and, subsequently, into the Black Sea; and (iii) demonstrate and disseminate through feasibility studies and workshops, cost-effective and affordable technologies for municipal wastewater treatment for the potential benefit of similar projects for Moldova’s existing wastewater treatment plants, for towns in Moldova that have no wastewater treatment, and for the countries that drain into the Black Sea.

PERIOD OF IMPLEMENTATION: 4 years.