The Economist - USA (2021-01-30)

Sources:Copernicus;WorldAirQualityIndex;“EU-28residentialheatsupplyandconsumption”,byN.BertelsenandB.VadMathiesen,Energies

Ground-levelPM2.5pollution

Microgramspercubicmetre,

January18th2021,10pmCET

PM2.5air-qualityindex,dailymedianincities Coaluseforresidentialheating,2015,TWh

→AirpollutioncoversalmostallofPoland,anddissipatesjustbeyondthecountry’sborders

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TheEconomistJanuary 30th 2021 73

S

ome countries’ borders are visible

from space. At night, North Korea looks

like a black void separating China from

South Korea. Deforestation in Haiti has left

a stark contrast between its brown soil and

the Dominican Republic’s lush vegetation.

Poland is an unlikely member of this

club. Yet on cold days, the edges of Europe’s

largest region of air pollution fit its outline

snugly. At 10pm on January 18th fumes en-

veloped almost the entire country, only to

dissipate 100km or so beyond its borders.

The air breathed by an average Pole may

not be Europe’s dirtiest. According to the

European Environment Agency, Balkan na-

tions like Serbia do worse on metrics like

years of life lost per person. However, Po-

land’s effluvia stand out for their geograph-

ical spread. Of the 100 European cities with

the most air pollution, 29 are Polish.

Poland’s nationwide sheet of smog

stems from its use of coal—often of the

cheap, extra-dirty sort—for home heating,

rather than the cleaner natural gas com-

mon in nearby countries. This causes 80%

of its emissions of PM2.5, grains of matter

that enter lungs easily. In the summer, Po-

land’s PM2.5 level is only slightly above the

euaverage. But when Poles turn up the heat

during winter, it can be three times greater.

Coal seams run deep in Polish history.

Under communism coal was both the main

fuel for the country’s economic modern-

isation and a big export. Afterwards, the

miners’ union blocked efforts to cut jobs in

pits. In 2007-15 the state spent €14.8bn

($18bn) propping up the bloated industry.

And in 2015 Law and Justice, a nationalist

party, won election with a manifesto that

supported coal. Poland is the only country

in Europe to use more coal-derived energy

for heating today than it did in 1990.

The ruling party has had to moderate its

backing for coal of late. The euhas ear-

marked €2bn to help Poland decarbonise,

while soaring prices for carbon-emission

permits have made electricity from coal

uncompetitive. The European Court of Jus-

tice has also found Poland in violation of

euenvironmental directives. Half of Poles

think air pollution is a serious problem.

In September Poland reached a deal

with unions to close its coal mines by 2049.

It has also subsidised replacements for

coal-powered heaters. The city of Krakow

has banned burning coal and wood, and

reaped bigger gains in air quality than

those of nearby areas. However, it will take

more than this for Poland to stop standing

out on pollution maps on a chilly day. 7

Coal-burning Poles have created

a big blob of pollution

Midnight sky

Graphic detailAir pollution