PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
Each year, 44 000 people in Poland die prematurely because of air pollution. In Opole Voivodeship, air quality has been lower than the allowed value for many years, making it the main environmental problem in the region. The main type of pollutants are PM10, PM2.5 and benzo(a)pyrene from private household heating.
The target is to reduce the regions emissions in this area by 1 350 Mg per year compared to the end of 2017 by 2025, a significant challenge for local governments, which must organise a strategy for replacing thousands of household boilers.
The implementation of previous Air Quality Plans (AQPs) highlighted local governments’ lack of relevant competencies and management systems, which resulted in the ineffectiveness of the AQP implemented in 2013.
Legislative and administrative measures introduced in Poland so far have been insufficient and must be strengthened at the national, regional and local levels. Current AQPs cover increasing capacity and improving the quality of public administration for implementing such plans. Introducing a management system would increase the effectiveness of measures to improve air quality, reduce administrative burdens and ensure optimisation of results in relation to the expenditure incurred.
To increase the efficiency of AQP implementation, it is necessary to integrate various activities for improving air quality and funding from various levels and various central and regional funding programmes into one management system in order to achieve synergies. In addition, implementation of an AQP management system would also help implement EU climate and energy policy and the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD).
OBJECTIVES
The main objective of the LIFE_AQP_Opolskie_2019.PL project was to shorten the AQP delivery time, increase the capacity and improve the quality of public administration of the Opole Voivodeship at all levels in relation to remedial actions set out in the plan. The project’s objectives were to:
- organise and implement a unified management system that supported the AQP implementation – all levels of local government of Opole Voivodeship put these regulations into practice
- increase public awareness in the field of air quality, by enhancing the involvement of local governments, society, NGOs and local entities in taking remedial activities supporting the actions in the field of AQP.
Specifically, the project aimed to:
- prepare and manage a platform for cooperation among partners, including the sharing of information on air quality and good practice
- increase the efficiency, effectiveness and quality of service for residents by implementing the AQP management system
- expand available information on air quality by integrating into the existing air quality monitoring system real time data from many places
- integrate, develop and share the environmental information system in Opole Voivodeship which included an improved list of emissions, processes and IT applications supporting the implementation of tasks included in the AQP
- increase the involvement of the public, non-governmental organisations and local entities in the implementation of remedial tasks resulting from the AQP through the implementation of information and education activities
- improve monitoring of the implementation status of AQP and control of its compliance with obligations.
The project also aimed to:
- contribute to the implementation of EU policies by increasing the energy efficiency of buildings, reducing primary energy consumption, increasing the share of renewable energy and reducing generated waste from furnaces
- address poverty
- increase public administration efficiency, reduce administrative burdens and improve access to environmental protection information
- contribute to increased employment in modern sectors of the economy, while promoting citizen science and cooperation between science, business and administration
- in a wider sense, prepare society for the adoption of WHO standards.
RESULTS
The project achieved the following results:
- 80% of inhabited buildings in the Opole Voivodeship included in the Central Register of Building Emissions
- 42 certified coordinators of AQP operating in the region
- 2 hardware and database servers working for AQP management
- 82 active users of the IT system for managing and reporting AQP results
- 766 training sessions carried out for the inhabitants covered by AQP
- at least 60% of communes implementing AQPs, including those running a subsidy scheme for more ecological heat sources replacement
- at least 30% of inhabitants declaring their intention to change their source of heat to a more ecological one or have already done so
- 18 716 individual heat sources replaced for a more ecological one
- 1 068.76 Mg per year reduction of PM10 dust emissions from the municipal and housing sector
- 50 070 tonnes per year reduction in CO2 emissions from the municipal and housing sector
