Summary of the LIFE project implementation in the Malopolska Region – January 2019

The most important events

In January 2019, the Malopolska Eco-managers:

• organized numerous meetings and educational events participated by more than 1,000 residents. The biggest events took place in the municipalities of Czernichów, Oświęcim, Liszki, Gorlice, Krakow, Tarnów and Limanowa,
• they developed more than 4,000 and distributed nearly 27,000 information and education materials on air protection and provided almost 13,000 pieces of advice to the Malopolska Region residents.

On 9 January a meeting was held at the headquarters of the Marshal’s Office of the Malopolska Region regarding the government Stop Smog program. The meeting was attended by representatives of the cities listed as the most polluted in Europe: Sucha Beskidzka, Krakow, Skawina, Nowy Sącz, Niepołomice, Tuchów, Wadowice, Proszowice and Zakopane. The main objective of the meeting was to analyze ways to help the Malopolska Region municipalities in the process of applying for funds available within the program.

All of the municipalities in the Malopolska Region received model leaflets and a model letter to residents about the requirements of the anti-smog resolution. Municipalities distribute the materials together with tax declarations and declarations regarding waste collection.

In January, there were also numerous meetings regarding the Clean Air, Stop Smog and the Integrated Support System for Low Emission Limitation (ZONE) policies and programs, in the implementation of which the Malopolska Region joined in an advisory capacity.

C.1. Eco-managers

Advice and assistance for residents

Eco-managers provided advice and assistance to the Malopolska Region residents with respect to the following:

• 6,376 people served in the office,
• 387 during field visits and meetings,
• ­5,884 by phone,
• 312 in writing or by email.

Inspections of waste incineration and thermal imaging

The Malopolska Region Eco-managers were involved in the inspection of waste incineration and thermal imaging. They conducted:

• 332 inspections of residents in the field of waste incineration. Violations were found in 8 cases,
• thermal vision camera surveys in 161 private and 7 public buildings in the following municipalities: Raciechowice, Słomniki, Gdów, Gołcza, Iwkowa and Tarnów and Krakow.

Surveys from residents and applications for co-financing

Eco-managers were also involved in collecting surveys from residents and considering applications for co-financing:

• 610 surveys were collected from the residents interested in using the co-financing,
• 199 applications of residents or entities for financing were considered,
• 119 agreements were signed with residents or entities for co-financing and 136 such agreements were settled.

What is more, Eco-managers introduced or updated data on 764 buildings in the base of heating sources.

C.2. Competence Center

• The Krakow Smog Alert rented dust meters to Eco-managers from the following municipalities: Szczurowa, Szczucin, Podegrodzie, Świątniki Górne and to groups dealing with air quality: the Zagłębie Smog Alert, Skawina Smog Alert, Chełm Smog Alert and Dolny Śląsk Smog Alert,
• the list of low emission heating appliances using solid fuels, meeting the Ecodesign requirements, available on the https://powietrze.malopolska.pl/ekoprojekt/ website has been updated with 6 heating devices and currently includes a total of 221 furnaces and space heaters,
• approx. 60 telephone requests were answered by the helpline operated by the Marshal’s Office of the Malopolska Region.

C.3. Support for the implementation of the ban on the use of solid fuels for heating in Krakow

Employees employed within the LIFE project were involved in verification of applications and the settlement of subsidies for the replacement of furnaces:

• they carried out 225 pre-employment inspections and 1 as-built inspection,
• they considered 51 residents’ applications for subsidies.

E.2. Local information and educational activities in the field of air protection

Educational materials on air protection

Eco-managers in the municipalities developed and distributed numerous educational materials on air protection:

• they developed 3,435 leaflets and brochures and 61 posters,
• they distributed 25,877 leaflets and brochures and 197 posters,
• they developed 628 and distributed 759 other educational materials (stickers for furnaces with information on the need to replace devices, calendars, children’s books, educational games, work cards for children, notebooks, magnets, reflectors).

Meetings and events

Eco-managers organized numerous meetings and events in January:

• 9 meetings with residents, participated by 390 people,
• 121 meetings with local leaders, including: councilors, village leaders, representatives of associations and foundations, representatives of Smog Alerts, school directors. A total of more than 500 people participated in the meetings,
• 5 other air protection events in which a total of 43 people participated (mainly as part of workshops for children).

E.3. Establishing a network for exchanging experiences with other projects

Clean Air programme

On January 3, a representative of the Malopolska Region participated in a meeting at the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Technology in Warsaw regarding the Clean Air programme.

The aim of the program is to reduce or avoid the emission of dust and other pollutants introduced into the atmosphere by single-family houses. The program focuses on replacing old solid fuel stoves and furnaces as well as thermal modernization of single-family houses.

Stop Smog

On 9 January a meeting was held at the headquarters of the Marshal’s Office of the Malopolska Region regarding the government Stop Smog program. The meeting was attended by representatives of the cities listed as the most polluted in Europe (as developed by the World Health Organization): Sucha Beskidzka, Krakow, Skawina, Nowy Sącz, Niepołomice, Tuchów, Wadowice, Proszowice and Zakopane.

The main objective of the meeting was to analyze ways to help the Malopolska Region municipalities in the process of applying for funds available within the program.

Seminar concerning home furnace inspection

On January 10, the Krakow Smog Alert held a seminar at the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Technology on the inspection of home furnaces, good practices and the reforms necessary in this area. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Technology, substantive units of local self-government and city guards.

During the meeting, Krakow Smog Alert presented the “Out of control” report presenting comprehensive analyzes of the home furnace inspection system in Poland. 

Integrated support system for Low Emission Limitation (ZONE) policies and programs

On January 11, a representative of the Malopolska Region participated in a meeting concerning the establishment of an Integrated System of Support for Low Emission Limitation Policies and Programs (ZONE).

The main objective of ZONE is to introduce assumptions, prepare, test and implement an electronic inventory system for low emission sources together with a database and tools for data analysis. The project is carried out by the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Technology, the Institute of Communications, the Institute for Chemical Processing of Coal, the Institute of Environmental Protection and the Krakow Smog Alert Association.

Catching-up regions

On January 18, at the headquarters of the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management in Warsaw, a representative of the Marshal’s Office of the Malopolska Region took part in a meeting held as part of the Catching-up regions project (implemented by the World Bank upon the request of the European Commission and in cooperation with the Ministry of Development, the Malopolska Region and the Silesian Region).

The experiences of the LIFE project and implementation of anti-smog resolutions in the Malopolska Region and in the Silesian Region were presented during the meeting.

The thermo-modernization tax relief was an additional theme of the meeting, i.e. the possibility to deduct the expenses for construction materials, equipment and services related to the implementation of the thermal modernization undertaking in a single-family residential building from the tax base.

Eco-discussion

On 21 January, the 41st Eco-discussion was organized by the Polish Ecological Club. The theme of the meeting concerned the issues related to the implementation of the “Clean Air” government program.

During the meeting, the Deputy Director of the Environment Department of the Marshal’s Office of the Malopolska Region suggested possibilities of supporting the program at the regional level, presented the results of the work of Eco-managers and presented the possibilities of implementing some solutions developed during the LIFE project in the government program.

E.4. Promotion of the project implementation

In January, the Eco-managers in municipalities:

• developed: 18 press articles and 118 articles and posts on the Internet and in social media, and they used other media 20 times (e.g. a Facebook funpage, wall newsletters, information boards),
• took part in media news events related to the project, i.e. 34 radio or TV programs.

The information published concerned, among others, the air quality and exceedance of the acceptable dust levels, implementation of the Clean Air programme, waste incineration inspection, anti-smog resolution, coal quality, furnace replacement.

All of the activities were carried out as part of the implementation of the “Implementation of Air Quality Plan for Małopolska Region – Malopolska in a Healthy Environment” enterp which aims at improving the air quality in the region.