The Sofia Municipality successfully closed the large-scale LIFE IP CLEAN AIR project with a National Conference, which presented the impressive results of the joint work of six Bulgarian municipalities. The event, held in Sofia, brought together representatives of the partner municipalities, state institutions and experts to discuss the achievements and future steps in the fight for clean air.
The project, the first of its kind in Bulgaria, provided free replacement of old wood and coal heating appliances with more environmentally friendly alternatives for thousands of households.
"In Sofia, in the last year and a half, we have been working at a very accelerated pace to catch up with a serious backlog," said the Deputy Mayor of Sofia for Ecology and Chair of the Project Steering Committee, Ms. Nadezhda Bobcheva. "These are not just numbers – these are healthier children, cleaner neighborhoods and a better quality of life for hundreds of thousands of Bulgarians."
The key results presented at the conference show a significant change:
Over 44% reduction in fine particulate matter (PM10) concentrations in Sofia compared to 2016 and 38.36% for the entire country.
80.4% fewer days with exceedances of the permissible norm in Sofia and 79.64% for the entire country.
In total, over 10,500 new devices have been installed in the six partner municipalities, with 5,557 in Sofia Municipality alone, supporting 3,180 households.
Ms. Bobcheva emphasized the social dimension of the project, which has provided thousands of households with the opportunity to transition to cleaner heating, without to bear unaffordable costs. "This is how Sofia combines stricter rules on air quality with care for the most vulnerable – and this is the right path to modernize the city."
The conference also discussed future plans to build on what has been achieved. Sofia will continue to work on new projects under the Operational Program "Environment", as well as on measures for sustainable urban mobility. The efforts will be supported by financial instruments such as the FLAG Fund, which will provide financing for green projects and facilitate the transition to cleaner energy.
"Together we have proven that clean air is not a dream, but an achievable goal when we build sustainable policies and think about people," concluded Ms. Bobcheva.
Key results of the LIFE IP CLEAN AIR project
Appliances and households:
Over 10,500 ecological heating appliances installed in the six partner municipalities.
Over 3,180 households in Sofia benefited from the free replacement, with 5,557 appliances installed in the capital.
Over 8,265 approved candidates in the six municipalities.
Impact on air quality:
For the six municipalities:
38.36% lower average annual concentration of PM10 compared to 2016.
79.64% fewer days with exceedances of the permissible norm compared to 2016
For Sofia:
44.4% lower average annual concentration of PM10 compared to 2016.
80.4% fewer days with exceedances of the permissible norm compared to 2016.
Monitoring:
12 new automatic measuring stations (AIS) for air quality control (two in each of the six municipalities).