Air Quality
House-owners in Ostrava have submitted a total 527 applications for subsidies to fund the installation of new boilers since the second call for applications was opened. The number of applications has grown rapidly from 432 in mid-September.
Since the initial wave of applications just after the opening of the second call, there have been an average of ten new applications from Ostrava households every week. Within the total area administered by the City of Ostrava (i.e. the city itself plus a number of outlying communities close to Ostrava), there have so far been a total of 869 applications (compared to 719 in mid-September): this is the highest number of any Czech city.
Currently a total of 6 518 registered applications have been submitted throughout the entire Moravian-Silesian Region. Applications can be submitted up to 31 December 2018, but only up to a maximum number of 10 000 applications. A total of 216 million CZK is still available in subsidy funding for approximately 2 000 future applicants.
Ostrava’s Deputy Mayor Kateřina Šebestová gave more details: “For applicants from Ostrava we are still offering subsidies of up to 10 000 CZK and the opportunity to take out an interest-free loan from the City to help fund your boiler replacement; the loan can cover up to 100% of the total applicable subsidy. We have already received the first two applications for interest-free loans, and I am confident that we will soon receive more – enabling Ostrava’s householders to continue to replace their old boilers in their homes.”
From 2022 it will no longer be legal to operate boilers in emissions classes 1 and 2. Owners of these obsolete boilers should take advantage of the current offer, which will enable them to replace their boilers with new, eco-friendly technologies while only having to pay a fraction of the actual cost.