Summary of LIFE Malopolska – May 2023

Main events

• The Trilateral Workshop of LIFE projetcts took place in Piestany, Slovakia, on May 17-19. It was attended by representatives of three LIFE projects from Poland, Slovakia and Hungary. The conference, organized by the Populair Project, brought together experts in various fields related to air quality. In addition, eco-advisers exchanged experiences from the implementation of the integrated project. It was an opportunity to discuss good practices in air quality monitoring, emission reduction and environmental improvement.
• The Energy Communities Congress was held in Bialka Tatrzanska on May 22. The meeting was attended by, among others, representatives of local governments and experts in the field of energy. One of the speakers at the meeting was Mr. Piotr Łyczko – Deputy Director of the Department of Environment, who presented the activities of the Małopolska province in the development of RES.
• A series of workshop meetings on effective communication with potential beneficiaries of the Clean Air Program ended on May 26. A total of 139 people took part in the trainings. The participants were mainly eco-managers from all over Małopolska. The series of trainings was organized as part of the Clean Air Academy.
• The eco-managers distributed a total of more than 17,000 informational and educational materials and provided more than 13,000 pieces of advice to residents of Malopolska.

C.1. Eco-managers

Advice and help for residents

In May, Ecodirectors employed under the LIFE program provided counseling assistance to residents of Malopolska in the amount of:

• 6,127 persons admitted in the office
• 6,234 by telephone
• 587 in writing or by e-mail
• 815 during field visits

218 inspections were carried out with residents regarding waste incineration. In 4 cases, violations were found.

Surveys from residents and funding applications

Eco-managers were involved in collecting applications for funding from residents. As of May 2023:

• 450 applications were collected from residents interested in benefiting from subsidies for heat source replacement.

The eco-managers entered or updated data on 12,999 properties in the Central Energy Efficiency Building Heating Register (CEEB).

C.2. Competence Centre

,,Eco-intervention” application

In May, 216 applications were accepted. The application is available at https://ekomalopolska.pl/app/ekointerwencja/index.html.

It can be specified:

• 114 reports of air pollution,
• 66 illegal waste disposal,
• 23 related to sewage and waste discharge,
• 13 were classified as other notifications,

The Competence Center responded to more than 80 inquiries addressed to UMWM in the form of e-mails and 100 telephone inquiries.

Meeting with an expert

The National Energy Conservation Agency, as part of its online training courses titled “Meeting with an Expert,” held two events in May, featuring eco-advisers:

10.05 – Energy performance certificate and energy audit of a building – when to perform them?

24.05 – White Certificate System – financial support for Local Government Units in energy transition.

Training for eco-managers on effective communication with the resident

A series of workshop meetings on effective communication with potential beneficiaries of the Clean Air Program ended on May 26. A total of 139 people took part in the trainings. The participants were mainly eco-counselors from all over Małopolska. The series of trainings was organized as part of the Clean Air Academy.

Regional evaluation workshop on the results of the ENTRANCES project

A regional evaluation workshop on the results of the ENTRANCES project was held on May 10, 2023. During the meeting, scenarios for the energy transformation of the Krakow Metropolis were presented. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Competence Center.

Meeting on the System of Local Public Warnings (SYSLOP)

On May 11, a meeting was held on the System of Local Public Warnings (SYSLOP) for the Mazowieckie and Malopolskie provinces. During the meeting, the level of work on the system was summarized, recommended changes to the Short-Term Action Plan were presented, and the process of implementing the SYSLOP system was discussed.

E.2. Local informational and educational activities on air protection

Educational materials on air protection

Eco-managers in the municipalities:

• distributed 14,565 leaflets and brochures and 1,151 posters,
• prepared and distributed 1,543 other educational and promotional materials (promotional materials, leaflets related to the Clean Air Program, board games and school materials for children).

Meetings & Events

Eco-managers organized meetings and events:

• 11 competitions for children and young people, with 488 participants,
• 117 meetings in schools and kindergartens, attended by 3,126 people,
• 31 meetings with local residents, attended by 465 people,
• 20 meetings with local leaders, with a total of 90 people,13 other events on the topic of air protection, attended by 2,087 people.

Use of media

Eco-managers in the municipalities have prepared:

• 12 articles in the press,
• 65 articles and posts on the Internet and social media,
• 29 times used other media

and took part in media information related to the project:

• 14 radio or TV broadcasts.

E.3. Networking with other projects

Conference Trilateral workshop of LIFE projetcts

The Trilateral workshop of LIFE projetcts took place in Piestany, Slovakia, on May 17-19 and was attended by representatives of three LIFE projects from Poland, Slovakia and Hungary. Representatives of the Malopolska LIFE project were representatives of the Competence Center of the UMWM together with Mr. Piotr Łyczko, Director, as well as Ecodoradors from Tarnów and Ciężkowice. The conference organized by the Populair Project brought together experts in various fields related to air quality. In addition, eco-advisers from Slovakia, Hungary and Poland exchanged experiences from the implementation of the integrated project. This was an opportunity to discuss good practices in air quality monitoring, emission reduction and environmental improvement. On the first and second days of the event, each of the invited projects presented the activities implemented under the LIFE Project. The Malopolska LIFE Project was represented in each topic:

• Presentation of the actual activities and outputs achieved for each projects – Anna Ponikiewska (Eco-manager) and Piotr Łyczko,
• National and regional air quality regulation – Natalia Ściślak and Klaudia Kowalczyk,
• Air quality monitoring and modeling – Piotr Łyczko,
• Financial instruments for improving Air Quality – Magdalena Łabuzek and Krzysztof Pluciński,

A group workshop covering the topics of educational activities, good practices and the Air Protection Program was also scheduled. On the last day of the study visit, participants learned about the activities of the Sorting Center.

We share the knowledge!

On May 24, a meeting was held with representatives of the Marshal’s Office of the Pomorskie Voivodeship. The activities of the Competence Center and partners of the LIFE project aimed at improving air quality were presented, and topics such as applying for participation in an international project such as LIFE were discussed.

E4. Promotion of project implementation

The Energy Communities Congress was held in Bialka Tatrzanska on May 22, 2023. The meeting was attended by, among others, representatives of local governments and experts in the field of energy. One of the speakers at the meeting was Mr. Piotr Łyczko – Deputy Director of the Department of Environment, who presented the activities of the Małopolska province in the development of RES.