Drive to Makarska

This morning we departed bright and early from our hotel atop a mountain in Istria and are heading for the coastal region of Makarska. While we are spending over eight hours on the bus today, I have sighted a few things worth mentioning. The regions of Croatia we are traveling through today are located along the cost of the Adriatic Sea and thus strong winds are a daily occurrence. These types of coastal winds provide great opportunities for resources but also offer some challenges for public health. While most days man and wind can interact with no problems, this is unfortunately not always the case. In the winter months especially the tidal winds can be especially strong and have been known to even cause traveling cars to turn over during a strong gust. Obviously this is a very serious traffic safety problem yet some safeguards have been put in place to protect drivers along this region. In many of the stretches of highway most exposed to the tidal winds, special wind barriers have been placed to help prevent serious accidents due to these strong gusts.

While the wind can pose some challenges, it is also a great resource for energy and it seems that many areas of Croatia along the coast are harnessing its potential. Traveling along the highway, I have noticed several mountain tops lined along both sides with turbines for harnessing the power of the wind. It is not every day in the U.S. that I come across so many windmills in one place. It is unfortunate that many coastal areas in the U.S. are lined by high price homes and residents will often protest proposed wind turbines because they don’t wish to have such a ghastly sight near their property. I find that these windmills almost add something to an already beautiful coastal landscape in Croatia. While they are noticeable atop the mountains, they have a certain serene nature and I believe add character to the landscape. Beyond aesthetics, these wind turbines can help to improve air quality and thus human health. If you have watched t.v. over the past year, you’ve probably seen commercials featuring the well known oil tycoon Boone Pickens. Over the past several years, Mr. Pickens has become a strong advocate for energy independence, or reducing our dependence on foreign sources of oil. While many of these commercials focus on increasing the use of natural gas, which is abundant in the U.S., Mr. Pickens is also an advocate for wind energy. In fact, he is currently planning the construction of the largest “wind farm” or collection of wind turbines in the U.S. which will be located in the state of Texas.

The energy power of the wind is significant and its production has virtually no negative impact on the environment. Yet, wind power alone will never be enough to provide all the world’s power. A sound energy policy will utilize all possible environmentally friendly sources of energy: wind, solar, geothermal, and even perhaps nuclear to reduce the amount of energy from fossil fuel burning facilities. Currently the most common method of energy production is coal burning, which emits large amounts of so called greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, nitrous and sulfur oxides, among others. Through various mechanisms, these greenhouse gases pollute the air and can cause increased mortality and increased rates of various respiratory disorders and some forms of cancer. Thus it is exciting to see these wind turbines lining the mountains. By placing even more along high wind regions, Croatia will further eat up the part of the energy pie occupied by fossil fuels. With this small step Croatia will help to ensure cleaner air and better health for the people.

-Ben

Osijek

May 14th We visited the town of Osijek. Osijek is located in Eastern Croatia, near the Drava River. It is a town scarred by the war, but is slowly being rebuilt to its previous beauty. Here we noticed that there are huge differences in leisure and recreation than in Zagreb. The town is very family oriented and our guide said that it was a very safe city. We went on a walking tour and were able to see many oppurtunities for exercise throughout the town. Near the river there is a pedestrian and bike path. No cars are allowed on this level. Many people were riding bikes with children secured in seats on the back. The majority of the kids who were in the seats or on their bikes had on helmet. Near the pedestrian and bike path there were soccer fields, tennis courts, skating areas, playgrounds, and parks.

We saw people of all ages taking part in tennis lessons or games. Parents were playing with their children on the playgrounds, not just sitting and watching them from afar. Many younger girls were skating around not just in the parks, but on the sidewalks in the city as well. We also noticed rowing equipment near the river. There was a lot of green space in Osijek. The town seemed to appreciate lesiure and exercise more than the residents of Zagreb. Zagreb is more of an urban city than Osijek. We have only seen two workout centers on the outside of Zagreb. There are people riding bikes, but it is used for travel, not exercise. We do know that there are tennis courts near our hotel, but we have not visited them yet.

While we were there the town was having a street festival. Families were all around listening to music and enjoying food and carnival attractions. In Zagreb we passed by a concert one night (for a political campainging), but it was not targeted to families.

Upon intering the city, there were recycling bins for various materials. We have not seen this in Zagreb.

Osijek, though stircken by war, is a very lively and youthful town.

-Rachel

Environmental Health

While the layout adds to the character of Zagreb and makes for a very beautiful and functional capital city, it also has some very positive implications for the environment and thus the health of the people of the city. While there are still plenty of cars traveling down the city streets, the number pale in comparison to most big cities in the U.S. and one can spot far more SMART cars than S.U.V.’s parked along the side streets. Virtually all of the cars in Zagreb are very compact and surely more eco friendly than even compact cars in the U.S. This reduction in numbers of cars and their eco friendly nature surely help to reduce the amounts of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases emitted into the city air. In addition, the main transportation choice for navigating the streets of Zagreb is an electric tram system, or series or passenger rail cars that are powered via electricity. The city of Zagreb also lends itself quite nicely to walking and many locals and tourists alike reach their destinations on foot, the ultimate eco friendly transportation.

It doesn’t take any sophisticated equipment to detect the reduced levels combustion pollutants in the air of this city. In fact, one only needs to take a deep breath to realize that there is something very different from the air quality of most busy U.S. cities. As a student of public health, I immediately begin to think of how wonderful this is for the health of the people of Zagreb; decreased rates of asthma, lung cancer, other respiratory diseases oh my! But alas I quickly realize that around each new corner the noxious odor of cigarette smoke is penetrating my lungs, and my public health bubble has been burst.
- Ben