Unit TSP Abatement Costs of Building Modernization as a Tool of Air Quality Management: Krakow Case Study

Abstract

The problem of air quality is an urgent, and widely discussed political issue nowadays. Reducing air emissions is an expensive element of air quality management which can be reached by set of different independent means. One of the areas where solutions for improving air quality in cities can be found is the largest energy-consuming building sector, and related heating needs. The aim of the paper is to estimate the unit Total Suspended Particulates (TSP) abatement costs of building envelope modernization and replacement of heating systems with cleaner ones for buildings in the city of Krakow (Poland). Three, typical for Krakow, types of buildings are analyzed: a single-family house, a pre-war tenement house, and a block of flats. In all the options the base scenario is a coal heated building. The analyzed building’s upgrade includes different combinations of changes of heat source and insulation improvements. For each of the scenarios, the costs as well as the expected effects of unit TSP emission reduction were estimated for the whole city. This approach can support the decision making, planning and financial balancing of the most beneficial activities or estimation of the expected environmental effects.