•    Since 2004, over 4,000 projects of various types have been supported in the energy and environment sectors [1].
•    The total amount of EU funding granted was nearly EUR 16 billion.
•    Over the last 20 years, more than 2,200 investments have been supported in the environment sector, with EU funding of more than EUR 11.3 billion granted
•    A total of 1,800 projects in the energy-related area have been supported with EU funding of over EUR 4.6 billion.
•    Thanks to EU funding, we have made a number of valuable investments in the past two decades, increasing the country's energy security, protecting the environment, making us more resistant to the effects of climate change, and raising Poles' standard of living. A few of them are worth mentioning.

•    nearly PLN 9 billion from the EU for investments in national energy security
implemented by the Oil and Gas Institute – National Research Centre [2]
•    PLN 1.04 billion for eliminating low emissions in the Śląskie Voivodeship [3]
•    The National Fund for Environmental Protection and water Management has implemented environmental investments [4]
•    PLN 300 million for biodiversity protection implemented by the Coordination Centre for Environmental Projects [5]
PLN 300 million for biodiversity protection implemented by the Coordination Centre for Environmental Projects

Biodiversity loss and damaging changes to ecosystems caused by human activities and climate change are among the most significant threats on a global scale.

Actions taken with European funding have a significant impact on the conservation of endangered species and habitats today and in the years to come [6].
The Coordination Centre for Environmental Projects has implemented 75 projects to this end. They have contributed, among other things, to improving valuable and protected forest, coastal, wetland, xerothermic habitats and selected plant species, including endemic and relict species. They have supported the conservation of, among others, the bison, lynx, grey seal, pond turtle, lesser horseshoe bat, barbastelle, European ground squirrel, black stork, peregrine falcon and many other animal species. They also provided tourist facilities (i.e. footbridges, lookout towers, resting places) to reduce anthropopression (human impact) on nature by directing tourist traffic and keeping it at a safe distance from the most valuable habitats and species.
•    75 projects were implemented, targeting the protection of Polish nature, including species and habitats as well as ecological corridors, with a value of over PLN 300 million,
•    the projects concerned mainly the active protection of species and habitats in national parks, nature reserves and Natura 2000 sites,
•    the area of habitats supported by projects to obtain a better protection status amounted to approximately 115,000 ha.
Investments for measures in the environment sector implemented by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management

Support for projects in the environment sector over the past twenty years has made an extremely valuable contribution to protecting the environment around us and increasing Poland's resilience to changing climate conditions. These projects are being implemented throughout the country, and the benefits affect each of us.

The National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management has implemented hundreds of such projects. Among them, support for water, sewage, and waste management, educational projects, caring for nature, and improving the quality of the urban environment have proved crucial. These activities have contributed to enormous changes in Poland, improving not only the quality and level of life but also the environment. The projects that have been completed or are nearing completion have made it possible, among other things, to:

•    the retention of 48 million m3 of water,
•    covering over 2 million people with flood protection,
•    construction or modernisation of 22,165 km of sewerage networks,
•    construction or modernisation of 7,160 km of water supply networks,
•    construction or modernisation of 590 sewage treatment plants,
•    support for 89 municipal waste management plants,
•    land rehabilitation of a total area of 30,620 ha,
•    implementation of 472 investments in environmental protection in enterprises, including 69 in air quality improvement,
•    coverage of over 1 million hectares of environmentally valuable areas with protective measures,
•    obtaining nearly 800 ha of additional biologically active area in towns and cities.
More than PLN 1 billion from the EU for the comprehensive elimination of low emissions in the Śląskie Voivodeship.

In the Śląskie Voivodeship, one of Poland's most smog-affected regions, the Voivodeship Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management has awarded a staggering PLN 1.04 billion to beneficiaries implementing projects of immense scale. These projects aim to significantly increase energy efficiency and air protection. They include deep, comprehensive energy modernisation of multi-family residential buildings, the construction and reconstruction of heat and/or cooling distribution networks to existing consumers mainly for municipal and household purposes, and the use of high-efficiency cogeneration of heat and electricity through the construction of heat and/or cooling distribution networks mainly for municipal and household purposes.

•    We estimate that deep thermo-modernisation will improve energy consumption in 15,300 households located in 739 buildings.
•    These projects will lead to a significant decrease in greenhouse gas emissions, reducing them by 300,475.56 tonnes CO₂ equivalent. Additionally, the projects will result in a substantial reduction in final energy consumption, saving 867,176.61 GJ/year [7].
•    The district heating network built or modernised as part of these projects is over 142 km long – almost the distance from Katowice to Piotrków Trybunalski.
PLN 9 billion of EU support for investments in Poland's energy security implemented by the Oil and Gas Institute – National Research Centre

Thanks to the implementation of EU funds, Poland is gradually developing its electricity and gas infrastructure, already producing concrete results [8]. In the current geopolitical situation, ensuring the country's energy security and the stability and continuity of electricity and natural gas supplies in Poland is significant.
Due to the substantial EU funds, which were instrumental in the initiatives the Oil and Gas Institute – National Research Institute implemented, we have witnessed significant advancements in our energy sector since 2007. These funds have allowed us to increase our natural gas storage capacity by one-third nationwide, and through the construction and expansion of the LNG terminal in Świnoujście, we have ensured the possibility of importing gas from anywhere in the world. This has enormously increased our country's energy security. We have also built thousands of kilometres of new gas and electricity networks and almost 60 substations (built or modernised), without which the entire electricity transmission system could not function. We are modernising our electricity system to increase the connectivity of new renewable sources.

•    nearly 1.8 thousand km of power transmission networks, which constitutes 11% of all such networks in Poland (nearly 16 thousand km), and 48 km of power distribution networks,
•    four underground gas storage facilities, which provided 1 billion m3 of additional natural gas storage capacity, which accounts for as much as 1/3 of all storage capacity in Poland [9],
•    nearly 2.1 thousand kilometres of natural gas transmission pipelines - which accounts for approximately one-sixth of all gas transmission pipelines built in Poland in the last several decades [10],
•    over 2.3 thousand kilometres of natural gas distribution pipelines (which is the same as the distance from Warsaw to Madrid),
7.5 billion m3 of natural gas per year may be imported through the LNG Terminal in Świnoujscie. This significant volume accounts for more than a third of the country's natural gas demand. This is more than is consumed by all households in Poland throughout the year.
On 1 May 2024, we celebrate Poland's 20th anniversary of entry into the European Union. On this day, we want to remind you how important it is in our everyday lives to belong to a community of Europeans and celebrate this day together with Polish women and men.
That is why we have an interactive map of all the initiatives for you so that everyone can find a way to celebrate together in their neighbourhood. Go to www.20lat.eu and find information on where events are being organised in your region.