The article presents an analysis of pro-ecological activities in the municipality of Wadowice in the field of air quality protection against the effects of low emission. Research conducted by the Provincial Inspectoratefor Environmental Protection in Krakow indicated that in the town of Wadowice, the capital of the municipality, in the period from October till March, the permissible level of particulate matter (PM10) was exceeded on average approximately 16 times within one month. The municipality of Wadowice is one of the most polluted unicipalities of the Małopolska voivodeship. The elaborated municipal Low-Emission Economy Plan, updated in 2017, is coherent with the climate and energy package and implements the guidelines of the new European Union 2020 strategy for economic and social development. Until 2015, the municipality had implementedthe KAWKA program, which led to liquidation of 11 coal-fired boiler rooms and installation of 11 new boiler rooms. The continuation of the system in 2016 enabled the closure of further 31 coal-fired boiler rooms and the assembly of new boiler rooms and 10 solar panel installations in order to reduce emissions in the local fuel-fired heat source. ...
The article presents an analysis of pro-ecological activities undertaken by the Commune Council of Nowy Targ in order to reduce low emission, and consequently to introduce a broadly understood low-carbon economy in this area. The commune aims at abandoning fossil fuels in favor of cleaner and safer methods of obtaining energy, which is to contribute to the reduction of PM10 and PM2.5 particulate matter emissions. In the nationwide arena, the commune was awarded in activities leading to the liquidation of low-emission as part of the competition for communes with a population up to 50,000 inhabitants and taking the second place in Poland in the "Gmina z Misją" ranking. The town of Nowy Targ was also the laureate of the fourth edition of the "#ekoLIDERZY2017 of the Małopolska Province" contest organized by the Provincial Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management in Krakow (WFOŚiGW) and won the prize of PLN 20,000 in the category of "#ekoPRZEDSIĘWZIĘCIE" in the field of air protection and investments contributing to energy savings. In the commune, interventional and preventive inspections are carried out on an ongoing basis. In January 2017, the mayor appointed an advisory team for the analysis of the degree of implementation of actions ...
In the article, technical and ecological analyses of thermo-modernization of a single-family house located in Kraków and the adaptation of the building to the current regulations were made. The parameters of the energy performance of the building before and after thermo-modernization were presented. For calculating the U-factor of building partitions and the heat demand for the building, the Sankom Audytor HL (OZC) software was employed. The Sankom Audytor ECO 1.0 software was utilized to calculate ecological assessment. In the case of existing buildings subject to thermo-modernization, it is practically challenging to provide a building with a level considered to be energy efficient without introducing additional system solutions in the building's internalinstallations as well as using highly efficient renewable energy sources. Due to the constantly growing requirements of the Technical Conditions in the area of limiting the consumption of heat carriers andreducing the U coefficient, thermo-modernization is one of the most important stages of decreasing the building's demand for primary energy. ...
The activity of steel and chemical industries, fertilizers and the development of transport mean that heavy metals (copper) in toxic quantities directly affect the condition of soil and natural ecosystems occurring in nature. The study concerned aimed at the assess-ment of the copper content in the soil samples and plant material from the area of the mu-nicipality of Trzebinia where the problem of the presence of toxic heavy metals in soils is long-term and is the result of anthropogenic human impact on the environment. 83 research areas were designated from which the plant material and soil samples were taken from the levels of 0-20 cm and of 20-40 cm. The copper content in the soil was determined by apply-ing the FAA Method.Additionally, in the soil samples the following were marked: granulometric compo-sition, soil reaction in 1M KCl and in water, electrolytic conductivity and organic matter content. The content of the aforementioned element in the plant material was evaluated by applying the Atomic Absorption Spectrometry. The conducted research did not reveal any copper contamination of the soil in the municipality of Trzebinia (Journal of Laws 2002). The plant material did not exceed any IUNG standards of ...
The aim of the article was to determine the content of heavy metals (lead) in soils and plants in areas heavily degraded by mining and processing industries. The study was con-ducted in the area of the municipality of Trzebinia, in the western part of the Małopolska province. Altogether 83 research areas were designated (one area of 25 m2) from which the plant material and soil samples were taken from the levels of 0-20 cm and 20-40 cm. The analysis of soil material was based on the determination of granulometric composition of the soil with the use of the Casagrande method modified by Prószyński [according to the industry standard (BN-78/9180-11), soil reaction in 1M KCl and in water with the use of the potenti-ometric method, electrolytic conductivity of the soil with the use of the conductometric meth-od, content of organic matter in soil by its annealing using the modified Tiurin method, the total Pb content in the soil using the FAA method. The analysis of plant material was based on the determination of the total content of Pb in plants using the atomic absorption spec-trometry. It was found that the mean lead content in the soil for the municipality exceeded the ...
The paper verified the hypothesis of the existence of the correlation between the content of zinc in soils and plants in the municipality of Trzebinia that is in the area which is highly degraded as a result of long term activity of mining and processing of local raw materials. In order to achieve the above, the total metal content in plant and soil material as well as the selected physicochemical properties of soil such as pH, electrolytic conductivity, organic matter content and granulometric composition were determined. 664 soil material samples and 332 plant material samples were collected in years 2010-2012 from 83 research plots located in fallow lands of the town of Trzebinia and in 10 village councils of the municipality. The results obtained of zinc content do not confirm the correlation between soil and plant. The disclosed concentration of the element is in line with indications of permitted levels of metal content in plants proposed by IUNG, which allows the use of plant material as animal feed. The mean content of zinc in the soils of the municipality is higher than the permitted level of national regulations. The claim that the soil of the municipality is contaminated with ...
The aim of the study was to evaluate the species composition in the fallow lands in areas heavily degraded by the mining and processing industries. The research was conducted in the western part of the Małopolska province in the municipality of Trzebinia. The layer C of phytocenosis that is the green layer was analyzed by specifying its all plant species and by approximately estimating vegetation cover according to the modified Braun-Blanquet scale. 212 species of vascular plants were found in the research areas. Species typical of fallow lands and ruderal areas i.e. giant goldenrod, couch grass and bush grass are the dominant species in the study areas. Among the species found in the study areas the species typical of fresh meadows such as false oat-grass, goosegrass and sorrel as well as thermophilic species such as crownvetch, greater knapweed or cypress spurge appear with great frequency. ...
The study aimed at finding a relationship between the content of cadmium in the soil material and in the above ground parts of plants taken from the areas of the municipality of Trzebinia. Research areas were designated in areas degraded by mining and processing industries, which are now fallows. The total content of cadmium in soil and plant samples as well as soil factors such as organic matter content, granulometric composition, pH and electrolytic conductivity were marked in laboratory analyzes. The concentration of the element in the soils of the municipality exceeded the national regulations for agricultural land (Journal of Laws 2002). Similarly, the metal content in plants is higher than the acceptable standards for animal feed as stated in Regulation of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (2012a). The results indicate a positive relationship between the content of cadmium in the soil at the level of 0-20 cm and its concentration in the above ground parts of plants of fallow lands of the Trzebinia municipality. ...
The article analyzed the results of air quality measurements in the city of Nowy Sącz and assessed the activities of the local government to reduce low-stack emission. Nowy Sącz is among the top European cities with the most polluted air. According to the annual mean PM10 particles levels within the Małopolska Province, Nowy Sącz belongs to the group of cities and poviats where the highest levels of this pollutant are recorded. In the case of PM2.5 particles, Nowy Sącz is the second city after Krakow in the Małopolska Province, where there is a significant exceedance, including the margin of tolerance, of the limit value of the pollutants. The backgroundand inflow of pollutants from outside the city reaches the level of about 17 μg·m-3, i.e. 85% of the limit value and 50% of the total level of the pollutant in the city. The local government undertakes investments aimed at improving air quality, inter alia: thermo-modernization of buildings, Renewable Energy Sources installation (solar installations) in buildings, elimination of coal boilers and replacing them with gas boilers or new generation boilers. ...
Water supply and sewerage infrastructure, which characterizes a particular territorial unit, is one of the key elements of its economic development. The sustainability index of water and sewage management system of the specific area, for which the total lengths of both water supply system and sewerage system are similar as it can be clearly seen, looking at the urban units of the Krakow Metropolitan Area, is absolutely vital. The apparent disparity between the lengths of both the water supply system and sewage system in the urban-rural and rural communes with a particularly significant shortage of sewerage infrastructure was shown. This proves the unsustainability of water and sewage management system in the area. A significant improvement in the condition of infrastructure in the analysed decade should be noted. This is clearly linked with the main objective of the Water Framework Directive and the subsequent participation of the analyzed area of KMA in the EU funds and other aid programs which aim at achieving a good level of water by 2015. ...
