ABSTRACT
The aim of this study is to present the concepts and manifestations of ecological innovations and their importance in reducing the negative impact of manufacturing and service processes on the natural environment, and in influencing society in the spirit of ecology. The authors raise the following issues: definition of eco-innovation and its types, ways of measuring eco-innovation level, including synthetic measures, schemes supporting eco-innovation in the European Union and in Poland, and its short characteristics in numbers, examples of eco-innovations implemented in Poland in the field of renewable energy sources with support of local government. Among the examples of eco-innovation, an analysis was made concerning the operation of the cluster in the area of Zgorzelec, standing out with the development of photovoltaic installations, two wind farms with different local conditions and development strategies, as well as the construction of a combined heat and power plant in Lębork in connection with the transition from coal to wood biomass in municipal energetics.
