How is climate change affecting Warsaw?
As in many other places in the world, even in Europe we are facing heatwaves and torrential rains, which sometimes lead to flooding across the city. The climate is changing right before our eyes. This is why we need to adopt measures that allow us to combat these devastating effects.
What action are you taking to address climate change?
Implementing climate measures is not always simple—some are costly, and others face public resistance. This is why informing people is absolutely crucial, especially when measures are slightly more controversial. For instance, we are currently working on creating a clean transport zone, trying to limit the access of old diesel cars in the city. Some people do not understand why new cars and trucks can enter the city, while diesel-powered ones cannot, and they question the impact of this measure on lower-income residents. This is why we focus on sharing the facts and explaining that newer vehicles produce less polluting gases, like nitrogen dioxide, and show that these steps are meant to prevent asthma and improve air quality. So, information is absolutely crucial as well as countering disinformation, whether it is spread through lack of knowledge or to undermine climate action on purpose. We also always try to consult residents so that they can voice their concerns when we introduce new measures. We have also created a citizens' panel on energy saving, where residents prepared a set of 49 binding recommendations, which I committed to implementing even before they were conceived. Over 60 per cent of them have already been successfully completed.
What are the benefits? Why is it important?
When we started greening the city, many people were complaining that there would be less parking space and more traffic. But as we introduce our measures, people do understand the benefits because they can experience cooler summers and they can breathe cleaner air. They can also see the difference on the 100 air quality monitors we have installed. People need to see and understand the positive health impacts in order to support these crucial climate measures.