Polish lawmakers have moved the country one step closer to making wind projects much easier to build, while also protecting natural habitats and locking in low energy rates for its citizens.
In late June, Poland's parliament passed a bill that would lessen the distance needed between wind farms and residential locations, Reuters reported. The original distance restrictions would remain in place between proposed wind farms and protected natural areas.
The draft legislation was originally approved in March. An amendment to the newly approved bill means that energy prices would be frozen for Polish households through the end of 2025, and incentives would be available for towns and homes near any new wind farm.
"This is a step towards lower power prices for Poles and for the economy, an idea we all share," Climate Minister Paulina Hennig-Kloska told the parliament. "The more power we have from renewable sources, the lower electricity prices will be."
The draft legislation was originally approved in March. Before it can become law, the bill still needs to pass Poland's Senate and be signed by the president, which could prove difficult, Reuters reports.
A 2024 report showed that Poland has the European Union's second-highest amount of greenhouse gas emissions, per the size of its economy. As such, the country's current government made renewable energy a key part of its campaign, and this bill is just the latest example of its growth in that regard.
Earlier this year, state-owned utility Enea announced the purchase of six wind farms, more than doubling its wind-energy capacity. Enea has pledged to be carbon-neutral by 2050.
Poland has also joined its neighbors in becoming one of the world's leading adopters of solar energy. Over the past five years, Eastern Europe's nine largest solar-producing countries, including Poland, have increased their capacity by more than 450%. That growth is more than three times higher than Europe as a whole.
Reuters reported that last year, almost 30% of Polish electricity came from renewable sources. In comparison, the United States sat at 21.4% at the end of 2023.
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