New
Populair under the microscope
09. 02. 2026
Air
In recent days, the 6th monitoring visit of the LIFE IP project – Improving Air Quality took place, with the participation of a representative from the ELMEN organization, responsible for monitoring and presenting projects supported by the European Union under the LIFE program. The monitoring visit took place in a very constructive and positive atmosphere. The project is progressing successfully and the activities are being implemented according to the approved schedule.
The aim of the monitoring visit is to determine the current status of the implementation of project activities based on the set outputs and milestones. In the monitoring period 2024-2025, most of the planned activities were completed and processed.
During the said period, thanks to the intervention of air quality managers, Air Quality Improvement Programs were issued for the Nitra, Banská Bystrica and Košice regions with the Košice agglomeration. Programs for other zones are in the process of finalization and preparation.
Interdepartmental cooperation in the field of air protection was launched. The task of the working groups is to identify areas beyond the competence of the environment ministry and to seek solutions in the interest of improving air quality and the health of the population of Slovakia and complying with international obligations.
As part of the Obnov dom mini challenge for low-income households affected by poor air quality, which was created in addition to the Obnov dom program and thanks to the efforts of the project team, advance payments of EUR 25,329,404 were made for the partial renovation of houses.
In the Banská Bystrica, Nitra and Žilina regions, tree planting was carried out to mitigate the effects of pollutants in the air. As part of the activity, the publication Landscape, Trees and We was published.
In the 2025/2026 school year, the educational campaign Something is Hanging in the Air was launched. Through 10 challenges, it seeks to draw the attention of individuals and groups to an invisible problem and show the possibilities of how to protect the air together.
Partial outputs in the areas of education, awareness-raising and monitoring were met by the set deadlines.
The monitoring visit also included a field visit to the town of Sereď. Thanks to the activities of the Populair project – regional air quality managers for the Trnava region – during the monitoring period, the campaign “Go to school on your own” at the J. A. Komenského Elementary School was successfully advanced to cooperation with the local government. At the end of last year, a Memorandum of Cooperation was signed between the Ministry of the Environment of the Slovak Republic and the town of Sereď, the aim of which will be the preparation of a safe school zone. The cooperation will include informative measurements of nitrogen dioxide from traffic and the subsequent processing of a traffic study, which will bring specific proposals for traffic calming and safer movement of pedestrians, especially children.
