Skopje drafts chimney cadastre and 100 electric buses in air-quality plan

Skopje authorities have drafted a multi-year plan that proposes a national-style registry of chimneys, the purchase of 100 electric buses and a package of short- and long-term measures to reduce particulate pollution ahead of the 2027–2031 period.

Key measures target households, traffic and industry

The draft air-quality plan, prepared by the City of Skopje on a digital platform and dated November 11, 2026, draws on a decade of monitoring from the State Automatic Ambient Air Monitoring System and external datasets such as IQAir. It confirms that concentrations of PM10 and PM2.5 in Skopje regularly exceed permitted limits, while also noting that overall pollution volumes have fallen by between 40 and 50 percent since 2015.

Current morning readings reported by the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning and IQAir indicate elevated pollution in several towns: Strumica registered an AQI of 115 (unhealthy for sensitive groups) and Skopje averaged around 85 AQI, with PM2.5 particles identified as the main pollutant.

Measures aimed at households include expanding district heating, replacing wood stoves and providing subsidies for solar systems and heat pumps. For transport the plan recommends acquiring 100 electric buses, introducing a low-emission zone in the city centre, implementing a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system and expanding cycling infrastructure.

Industrial measures envisage tighter controls and incentives for the adoption of best available techniques, alongside longer-term investments such as organics composting systems, expansion of the monitoring network and cogeneration gas plants. Short-term actions cover more frequent street washing, prevention of fires, dust control at construction sites and regular chimney cleaning.

Environmental groups welcomed parts of the plan as a useful basis for further work but urged alignment with new laws on air quality and industrial emissions and with national planning documents. The civic initiative Green Humane City criticised the draft for relying on outdated data and for insufficient inclusion of councillors and the public in the review process, calling for greater transparency and institutional procedures concerning industrial emitters.

Public-health data cited in the document underline the stakes: North Macedonia ranked high among European countries for average annual exposure to PM2.5 in 2019–2021 (30.3 μg/m3), with elevated pollution contributing to thousands of premature deaths each year and disproportionally affecting children.

Photo: press material from the event