Mar 17, 2021 | Society Orzesze in Poland was the city with Europe’s most polluted air in 2020 in Poland’s Silesian coal heartlands had levels of harmful particulate matter four times higher than the World Health Organisation target level However, the report made better reading for Poland overall. The country is regularly found to have the worst air pollution in the European Union but IQAir notes that its average air quality in 2020 improved significantly on previous years Poland had the 12th worst air quality among all countries in Europe Poland’s annual mean of PM2.5 (fine particulate matter) was 16.9 continuing an improvement from 18.7 in 2019 and 22.4 in 2018 Poland had the sixth worst air in Europe and second worst in the EU it had improved to have the tenth worst in Europe and fourth in the EU Poland has EU’s worst air pollution, shows new report In IQAir’s ranking of European cities Its annual mean PM2.5 level of 44.1 put it ahead of the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo and Valjevo in Serbia in second and third place respectively The WHO’s annual mean PM2.5 target is 10.0 No other Polish cities were listed among the worst 15 in Europe there were three Polish cities among the 15 most polluted The IQAir report points out that 2020 brought an “unexpected dip” in air pollution worldwide as a result of the pandemic and that 2021 would probably bring an increase in air pollution because of renewed activity Cleaner lockdown air may have saved 800 lives in Poland – more than the official virus death toll A major factor in Poland’s smog problem is the widespread burning of dirty fuels – including coal but also sometimes household waste – to heat homes Poland therefore suffers particularly in the colder months The latest IQAir report notes that it is one of the European countries “with a heavier reliance on coal-based energy and biomass burning for heating” with “unhealthy” average air quality in winter Although air pollution emissions across Europe have fallen considerably over past decades this “remains the continent’s greatest environmental health risk” How Poland has the EU's worst air pollution and why Poland has the EU's worst air pollution in two charts (via The Economist: https://t.co/i8k5iqpbQc pic.twitter.com/WyLGk2aFfw — Daniel Tilles (@danieltilles1) January 28, 2021 Earlier in the year, a ranking by the Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) also found Poland to have the most polluted air in Europe. In 2018, the World Health Organisation found that 36 of the EU’s most polluted cities were in Poland As awareness of Poland’s air pollution problem has increased in recent years a number of measures have been taken to tackle it at local and national level Poland’s public tries to clear the air In 2018 the government launched a “Clean Air” programme – theoretically one of the largest of its kind in Europe – which aimed to reduce smog by providing households with funds to replace old heaters and to improve insulation the initiative has been marred by poor implementation and resultant low take-up resulting in the European Commission considering withdrawing funding The government has since taken steps to make it easier for people to apply for subsidies Pioneering anti-smog measures improve air in one of Poland’s most polluted cities Main image credit: Agata Kubis/Greenpeace Polska (under CC BY-ND 2.0) Ben Koschalka is a translator and senior editor at Notes from Poland , , Karol Nawrocki even suggested that the state security services were involved in creating the scandal , , The 1,200 square metre national symbol was unfurled on the beach in Międzyzdroje , , The proportion of Poles saying the US has a positive influence on the world has also fallen to its lowest recorded level Apr 30, 2025 | , , , That response will include “large Polish and NATO exercises in Poland” Apr 29, 2025 | , , , Those employed in Poland work on average the third-longest hours in the European Union Apr 28, 2025 | , , , , Westinghouse and Bechtel were first chosen in 2022 as partners on the 192 billion zloty ($51 billion) project please consider helping us to continue and expand it [email protected] Copyright © 2025 Notes From Poland | Design jurko studio | Code by 2sides.pl Senior Research Fellow at the Global Europe Centre ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Weronika Strzyżyńska is currently studying journalism at Goldsmiths as a Scott Trust Bursary recipient She  has written on issues immigration and Brexit for New Statesman and Prospect Agnieszka Wądołowska is managing editor of Notes from Poland She has previously worked for Gazeta.pl and Tokfm.pl and contributed to Gazeta Wyborcza ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland and assistant professor of history at the Pedagogical University of Krakow He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications The Independent and Dziennik Gazeta Prawna ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Stanley Bill is the founder and editor-at-large of Notes from Poland.He is also Senior Lecturer in Polish Studies and Director of the Polish Studies Programme at the University of Cambridge Stanley has spent more than ten years living in Poland He founded Notes from Poland in 2014 as a blog dedicated to personal impressions cultural analysis and political commentary He is committed to the promotion of deeper knowledge and understanding of Poland He is the Chair of the Board of the Notes from Poland Foundation ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Professor of European Studies at Oxford University ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Professor at the Institute of History of the Jagiellonian University ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Executive Director of Taube Family Foundation ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Associate Professor at the Institute of Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Science ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR