News

September 7 marks International Day of Clean Air. On this day, UN member states draw attention to measures for improving air quality. The common goal is to enhance living conditions for residents and minimize the negative effects of air pollution on health and the environment. This year’s slogan, “Racing for Air”, emphasizes the need to accelerate solutions and take joint action to ensure clean air for everyone.

To maintain good air quality in the Trnava Region, the District Office of Trnava signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with the Ministry of Environment of the Slovak Republic. The purpose of the memorandum is to collaborate on preparing a draft Air Quality Management Plan (AQMP) for the Trnava Region zone. The strategic document aims to improve air quality at local and regional levels and reduce public exposure to harmful pollutants. The currently valid program was issued in 2013, so its update is a key task for the upcoming period.

The District Office of Nitra issued and published the Air Quality Management Plan (AQMP) on July 30, 2025. This marked the conclusion of a more than two-year process since the start of work on preparing the AQMP draft for the Nitra Region zone. The goal of the AQMP is to achieve good air quality in the defined area through the proposed measures. A new aspect compared to previous programs was the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) process, which also contributed to the extended release time.

From June 3 to 5, 2025, a multilateral workshop was held in Martin, organized by the LIFE IP – Air Quality Improvement project, with the participation of representatives from air quality projects in Hungary and Slovenia. The aim of the meeting was to share challenges, good practices, and proposals for potential collaboration.

On May 27, 2025, an initial working meeting took place at the Ministry of Environment of the Slovak Republic with the aim of fostering interdepartmental cooperation in the field of air protection. The meeting of representatives of ministries, organizations representing municipalities, and other relevant stakeholders was opened by State Secretary Mr. Filip Kuffa. As a result of the discussions, which were also attended by State Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Slovak Republic Mr. Jozef Smatana, working groups have been established. Their task will be to identify areas beyond the competencies of the environmental sector and seek solutions to improve air quality in the interest of public health and compliance with international commitments.

In early November 2024, an indicative measurement of air pollution caused by ultrafine particles (UFP – ultrafine particles) was carried out in locations in western and eastern Slovakia, focusing on major sources of air pollution. The aim was to determine to what extent industrial activity contributes to UFP air pollution in Slovak agglomerations – Bratislava and Košice. The measurements focused on industrial emissions were carried out within the activities of the Populair project in cooperation with the civic association CEPTA.

In connection with the Environmental Impact Assessment (SEA) process and the Air Protection Act, a public hearing was held on March 11, 2025 on the draft Air Quality Improvement Program (AQIP) for the Nitra Region zone and the Strategic Document Evaluation Report.

In connection with the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) process, a public hearing was held on 12 February 2025 on the draft Air Quality Management Plan (AQMP) for the Banská Bystrica region (BBSK) and the Strategic Document Assessment Report.

In connection with the assessment of the impacts of strategic documents on the environment (SEA), a public discussion of the Report on the Assessment and Proposal of the Air Quality Improvement Program (PZKO) for the Košice agglomeration and the Košice Region zone was held on February 4, 2025.

The Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute informs about the air quality forecasting service. The data is available through the CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service). The forecast products also include forecasts of natural dust concentrations. This is mostly dust from deserts or semi-deserts - in Slovakia it is the most frequently occurring "Saharan dust".