Abstract:

The challenges related to global climate were first tackled at the European Union (EU) level in 2000 (Kyoto Protocol of December 11, 1997 to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Journal of Laws of 2005, No. 203, item 1684)  when the European Commission established the European Climate Change Program (ECCP). The most important instruments in reducing EU greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were the newly established pollutant emissions market, introducing the mandatory share of renewable energy and increasing energy efficiency. In particular, the EU climate policy addresses the energy sector, which is mainly responsible, apart from transport, for GHG emissions (Adamczyk, 2009; Adamczyk, 2010). Therefore, the effectiveness of climate change depends on the restructuring of the energy sector, especially the selection of renewable energy sources (RES) and the efficiency of combustion processes.