The Polish government has launched the latest round of its “Clean Air” programme, which aims to tackle the country’s poor air quality by providing subsidies for households to upgrade to cleaner heating systems and to improve insulation.
Poland suffers from some of Europe’s worst air pollution, and the burning of coal and other polluting substances to heat homes is one of the biggest causes.
With a budget of 103 billion zloty (€22.5 billion) for the period 2018-2029, the programme is supposed to be the largest of its kind in Europe. However, it was initially hit by a number of problems that led to low uptake of the subsidies.
The new, third edition of the programme, which went into effect on Tuesday, is offering increased subsidies – of up to 69,000 zloty (€15,000) – for poorer households to modernise heating and insulation. Previously a maximum of 37,000 zloty was available.
It also includes new rules allowing for its subsidies to be combined with various local-level financing schemes as well as possible extensions of payments where there are delays in setting up gas installations by utility providers.
The programme will also allow for an extended catalogue of new heaters, including dual-fuel furnaces that burn wood and wooden pellets. Last year, the government moved to exclude cleaner, new-generation coal stoves from the scheme.
“We are trying to modify the offer of the Clean Air programme so that it is available to the largest possible group of people,” said Bartłomiej Orzeł, the prime minister’s plenipotentiary for clean air. “We are meeting the needs of the poorest citizens, realising that it is very often their homes that require the most urgent support.”
The environment minister, Anna Moskwa, said that further “challenges” lie ahead, included tailoring the scheme to benefit from EU funding and reviewing the scope of subsidies to place more emphasis on thermal modernisation, “which effectively translates into energy efficiency savings”.
Moskwa said that the government was also planning a new nationwide scheme for residents of buildings housing several families to replace their coal furnaces.
Już od jutra można składać wnioski w 3. części programu #CzystePowietrze. Dla najmniej zamożnych beneficjentów przygotowaliśmy do 69 tys. zł dofinansowania na termomodernizację i wymianę „kopciuchów”. pic.twitter.com/zG2KYQnj2w
— Anna Moskwa (@moskwa_anna) January 24, 2022
Since launching in 2018, the Clear Air programme, which is overseen by the environment ministry and the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management, has received 384,000 applications for a total of 6.45 billion zloty (€1.41 billion) of funding.
That has led to 307,000 agreements for a combined 5 billion zloty (€1.09 billion) being approved. Last year, the then environment minister noted that 15% of beneficiaries had opted for modern coal heaters, while over half chose gas installations.
Main image credit: Grzegorz Skowronek / Agencja Gazeta
Maria Wilczek is deputy editor of Notes from Poland. She is a regular writer for The Times, The Economist and Al Jazeera English, and has also featured in Foreign Policy, Politico Europe, The Spectator and Gazeta Wyborcza.
