Abstract
Local investments for the development of renewable energy sources (RESs) constitute an important element of sustainable rural development. They are conducive to the social and economic development of the said areas, and improve the environmental values and living conditions of their inhabitants. However, such advancement in rural areas is not possible without adequate financial support, including the funds from the EU budget. Therefore, the main objective of the research is to assess the scale, scope and importance of local investments in renewable energy sources in rural areas of Poland in 2014–2020, cofinanced from EU funds. The study covered 1117 projects, whose beneficiaries were rural and urban–rural municipalities. Evaluation of the municipal investment activities in acquiring EU subsidies in the area of environmentally friendly energy was conducted using selected methods of descriptive statistics and the analysis of variance. Subsequently, with the use of logistic regression, the study identified the main socioeconomic, financial and environmental conditions of the investment activities of the local government entities in RES in rural areas. Empirical studies allowed for the positive verification of the research hypothesis, which assumed that “The highest investment activity in the field of local projects co-financed from EU funds, related to the development of RES in rural areas, may be attributed to municipalities performing primarily agricultural functions, located in Eastern Poland”. The municipalities’ own income potential and investment activity are of major importance for the acquisition of EU funds used in RES financing. Municipalities at a lower development level demonstrated a greater activity in accessing these funds. They view the development of RES as an opportunity for accelerated growth.
Highlights
In recent years, after Poland’s accession to the European Union (EU), a considerable amount of attention has been given to perspectives and threats of the rural development, especially in the context of their sustainable development [1]
From the base of nearly 75 thousand projects implemented within the 2014–2020 EU Perspective, those fulfilling the 04 objective of supporting the transition to a low-carbon economy in all sectors were identified for the study purposes
The research revealed that 2777 projects in the field of energy have been conducted within the 2014–2020 Perspective, amounting to PLN 12.99 billion (EUR 2.92 billion), of which nearly 75.8% has been financed from the EU budget
Summary
After Poland’s accession to the European Union (EU), a considerable amount of attention has been given to perspectives and threats of the rural development, especially in the context of their sustainable development [1]. The use of renewable energy sources (RESs) may improve the quality of the natural environment in rural areas [10]. It is worth noting that the development of RES has to be coordinated with other actions that improve the energy efficiency of the economy. Without taking such actions, a phenomenon known in economic literature as the Jevons paradox may occur. After a certain economic development level is exceeded, the so-called turning point occurs and the environmental protection expenditures start to grow. This dependence in relation to wealth and income inequality was spotted by Kuznets. The use of renewable energy resources without taking any other actions aimed at social and economic development may turn out to be another unsustainable strategy [19]
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