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An air quality improvement programme (AQIP) is a strategic planning tool that is developed for a zone and agglomeration in which the concentration of a pollutant exceeds the limit or target value for the protection of human health and vegetation. In a zone or agglomeration where the limit or target value is exceeded, the district office in the regional seat shall develop an AQIP with the aim of achieving and maintaining good air quality in the long term through the measures taken.

According to the results of Slovak Hydrometeorological institute (SHMI) monitoring, the limit values ​​for PM₁₀, PM_2.5, SO₂, NO₂, CO, B(a)P and benzene have not been exceeded in the Bratislava agglomeration or the Bratislava Region zone in recent years; however, the target value for ground-level ozone (O3) at the suburban background station Bratislava, Jeséniova, has been repeatedly exceeded in the agglomeration.

The District Office in Bratislava has therefore proceeded to develop the AQIP and submitted it for public discussion.

For the purposes of air quality assessment, the territory of the Bratislava Region is divided into the Bratislava agglomeration (the territory of the capital of the Slovak Republic) and the Bratislava Region zone (the rest of the region without the agglomeration) for the pollutants SO₂, NO₂, NOx, PM₁₀, PM_2.5, benzene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and CO. For lead, arsenic, cadmium, nickel, mercury and ozone, a separate division into one agglomeration and one zone is applied at the level of the Slovak Republic.

The Air Quality Improvement Program for the Bratislava agglomeration and the Bratislava Region zone is being developed by the Bratislava District Office also on the basis of the risk municipalities determined by the SHMI using the so-called integrated assessment method (RS 2 and RS 3). In the Bratislava agglomeration, two municipalities with risk level 3 have been identified: the Bratislava–Staré Mesto urban district and the Bratislava–Nové Mesto urban district (dominantly influenced by road traffic); in the Bratislava Region zone, only one municipality is at lower risk – Marianka with RS 1. Risk municipalities with RS 3 establish the obligation to prepare an AQIP and measures are also recommended for RS 2. Municipalities with RS 2 in the territory of the Slovak Republic have not been identified. The main long-term objective of air protection policy is to achieve a level of air quality that will not have a significant adverse impact on human health and the environment and will not pose a risk to them.

The aim of the AQIP is to achieve good air quality in a defined area through the proposed measures. The AQIP for the Bratislava agglomeration and the Bratislava region zone meets the requirements set out in the Decree of the Ministry of the Environment of the Slovak Republic No. 250/2023 Coll. and includes an assessment of the current state of air quality in terms of compliance with air quality standards, identification of the share of sources in air pollution, measures taken so far and current measures to achieve better air quality, deadlines for their implementation, performance indicators, data on persons responsible for the implementation of measures and an assessment of the effectiveness of the measures taken.

The evaluation report of the strategic document as well as the draft program are available on the Enviroportal: https://www.enviroportal.sk/eia/detail/program-na-zlepsenie-kvality-ovzdusia-pre-aglomeraciu-bratislava-zonu-

Consultations regarding the evaluation report and the draft AQIP for the Bratislava agglomeration and the Bratislava Region zone are possible at the Bratislava District Office, Department of Environmental Care, Department of Nature Protection and Selected Components of the Region's Environment, Tomášikova 46, 832 05 Bratislava, throughout the entire process of assessing the impacts of the strategic document (on working days during office hours). We recommend that you arrange the consultation date in advance by calling 0961046610 or by e-mail to: peter.pilinsky@minv.sk

Due to the large number of municipalities affected, the report on the evaluation of the strategic document together with the draft strategic document will be accessible for inspection in hard copy only in the affected municipalities: Bratislava, the Capital of the Slovak Republic; the City of Senec; the City of Malacky and the City of Pezinok.

Public opinions can be submitted to the Bratislava District Office, Department of Environmental Care, Department of Nature Protection and Selected Components of the Region's Environment, Tomášikova 46, 832 05 Bratislava.

A public hearing on the Report on the Evaluation of the Strategic Document and the draft program will take place on June 17, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. at the Bratislava District Office, Tomášikova 46, 832 05 Bratislava, meeting room no. 1 R 01 1st floor. If you are interested in participating in the public hearing, please register at peter.pilinsky@minv.sk by 15.6.2026 in the form of: first name, last name, name of institution (if relevant).

More information about air quality in the Bratislava Region can be found in the brochure Do you know what you breathe?: https://populair.sk/storage/web-documents/208/viete-co-dychate-bsk-brozura.pdf