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The largest part of the billion package, up to 500 million EUR, will go to a complex renovation of houses. The Ministry of Environment of the Slovak Republic (MoE SR) has prepared a project called "Green Houses", whose ambition is to support 40,000 projects for the renovation of family houses. Green renewal will include a whole range of measures. From window replacement through insulation, rainwater collection, to heating and heat exchanger for hot water heating. "It will be a unique project in the post-revolutionary history of Slovakia, which has not been implemented by any other previous government," stressed the Minister of Environment Ján Budaj.

The project, which aims to reduce the energy intensity of homes by 30%, will be managed by the Slovak Environment Agency. The state will contribute half of the eligible costs of the project to the reconstruction of houses, while applicants will also be offered other forms of financing. All information, including mandatory requirements for submitted applications and deadlines, will be published after the final approval of the Recovery Plan by the Government of the Slovak Republic.

Promoting biodiversity and adapting to climate change is key to nature conservation. In the Recovery Plan, the total of 150 mil. EUR is selected for this cause. The priority of the environmental sector is the reform of nature protection and water management in nature, as well as the reform of landscape planning. The Ministry of Environment of the Slovak Republic has already prepared new legislation, the aim of which is to manage the state-owned forests that are in national parks as territories in the 3rd and 4th and 5th degree of protection, under the administration of the State Nature Protection of the Slovak Republic. According to Minister Budaj, it is important to focus on supporting forests and on property settlement with private forest owners in protected areas. The aim of the Ministry of Environment is to keep people in the mountainous areas of Slovakia, through the support of natural management and soft tourism projects.

The Ministry of the Environment of the Slovak Republic will support the reform of the liberation of Slovak rivers from the Recovery Plan. Revitalization of watercourses will create space for their ecological management and retention of water from erroneous and harmful interventions.

The third important area is the decarbonisation of industry. Without it, it will not be possible to achieve carbon neutrality and meet the EU's environmental goals. The recovery plan envisages an investment in this area of 350 mil. EUR.

Slovakia is one of the most industrialized countries in the EU. This results in higher production of industrial emissions than the EU average. "We need a viable and modern industry that will not exclude environmental protection," Minister Budaj emphasized. "We will focus on supporting scientific research projects, introducing new technologies and innovations to make Slovakia a competitive country on the international stage," added Minister Budaj.

The European Recovery Plan was created as a joint response by the Member States of the Union to the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The recovery plan will bring Slovakia additional investments of 5.84 billion for education, science and research, the green economy, health, public administration and digitization. EU countries, including Slovakia, must meet the requirements of the European Commission in its preparation, which includes the condition to allocate at least 37% of allocated resources for green transformation.