According to preliminary estimates of the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management, approximately 6 thousand applications under the “Clean Air” program may contain irregularities to the detriment of the beneficiaries – Paulina Hennig-Kloska, Minister of Climate and Environment, informed journalists. There has been a break in the processing of applications since last Friday.
As Hennig-Kloska pointed out, the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management (NFOŚiGW) is preparing an appropriate notification about the possibility of committing a crime, which is to be sent to the prosecutor's office this week.
Hennig-Kloska added that the notification is intended to concern the activities of contractors – companies carrying out appropriate investments on behalf of the beneficiaries. The minister noted that 6,000 applications potentially containing irregularities out of over a million submitted so far under the Clean Air program, is “an order of magnitude per mille”. “But behind each of these situations there is an injured citizen, and we must provide a safe product,” she added.
Break in the “Clean Air” program
Last week, Hennig-Kloska indicated that a specially appointed team had initiated inspections of already completed investments in order to achieve the goal, i.e. the assumed energy efficiency.
“We want to suspend the acceptance of applications for a quarter and, during that time, focus on the 'Clean Air' program for flood victims,” Hennig-Kloska said. Later in the conversation, the minister clarified that, according to the information provided to her by the management board of the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management, “the break in the processing of applications may last until end of March”.
The Minister of Climate announced changes to the program. As she said, among other things: subsidies for thermal modernization are to be paid directly to the applicants because they are responsible for the entire investment. “The provisions that the money was transferred to the account of the contractor company and that the beneficiary, i.e. the applicant, was responsible for the completed investment were absurd,” Hennig-Kloska pointed out. According to her, the new regulations will be simpler, the processing of applications will be faster, and the program will be “tighter”.
The head of the ministry announced that all applications submitted so far will be considered, and those who are just planning to submit an application will be able to do so “after the resumption of accepting applications based on the new version of the program.”
Main photo source: TVN24