Poland’s air quality has improved, Chief Inspector says
There has been a notable improvement in Poland’s air quality, Polish Chief Inspectorate for Environmental Protection has found in an analysis of air quality measurements during the 2022/2023 heating season (22 June).
The heating season was defined as the period from 15 September 2022, to 15 April 2023. The analysis focused on pollutants primarily emitted from residential heating, including sulfur dioxide, particulate matter “PM10” and “PM2.5” (measured by all automatic stations in Poland) and benzo(a)pyrene in particulate matter PM10 (measured by manual stations).
The analysis revealed that the average concentrations of these four pollutants were the lowest in years during the 2022/2023 heating season when compared to the recent heating seasons. However, it’s important to consider that meteorological conditions in a given area during a specific period also influence pollutant concentrations.
According to data from the Polish Institute of Meteorology and Water Management, the individual months of the 2022/2023 heating season were categorised as follows: September 2022 – “very cold,” October 2022 – “extremely warm,” November and December 2022 – “thermally normal,” January 2023 – “extremely warm,” February 2023 – “slightly warm,” March 2023 – “warm,” and April 2023 – “cool.” In Warsaw, the temperature anomalies were generally positive, except for September 2022 and April 2023.
The observed improvement in air quality during the last heating season is attributed to a combination of government initiatives aimed at enhancing air quality and favourable weather conditions, Poland’s Climate and the Environment Ministry said in a press release.