Citation: Tauš, P.; Beer,M. Evaluation of the Hydropower Potential of the Torysa River and Its Energy Use in the Process of Reducing Energy Poverty of Local Communities. Energies 2022, 15, 3584. https://doi.org/10.3390/en15103584 Academic Editors: Nikolaos P. Theodossiou and Helena M. Ramos Received: 1 April 2022 Accepted: 11 May 2022 Published: 13 May 2022 Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affil- iations. Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/). energies Article Evaluation of the Hydropower Potential of the Torysa River and Its Energy Use in the Process of Reducing Energy Poverty of Local Communities Peter Tauš and Martin Beer * Institute of Earth Sources, Faculty of Mining, Ecology, Process Technologies and Geotechnology, Technical University of Košice, Letná 9, 042 00 Košice, Slovakia; peter.taus@tuke.sk * Correspondence: martin.beer@tuke.sk Abstract: The presented paper deals with the evaluation of hydropower potential in a selected section of the Torysa river in the eastern part of the Slovak Republic. This part of the country was chosen based on the existence of a significant risk of increasing energy poverty in local marginalized communities. Small hydropower plants in the form of mini and micro installations are an ecological and economical way to secure electricity and suppress indicators of energy poverty. The essential part of work focuses on the quantification of the gross (theoretical), technical, and economic hydropower potential of the Torysa river using elevation data obtained by GIS tools and hydrological data provided by The Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute. The next step identified concrete locations with a suitable head and volumetric flow rate. In the last part, the assessed section of the Torysa river was analyzed in terms of geographical collisions with NATURA 2000 areas, historical heritage elements in the country, and natural water bodies without hydropower potential (i.e., lakes, ponds, etc.). The resulting technical hydropower potential of selected part of Torysa river is 5425 kW and the economic potential is 1533 kW. Keywords: renewable energy sources; hydropower potential; small hydroelectric power plant; energy poverty; Slovak Republic 1. Introduction Climate change poses a significant threat to the way of life of modern society as we know it. Its negative impact is reflected not only in the environmental field, but also in the economic and social aspects of society. The vast majority of modern and developed countries recognize the fundamental impact of human activity on climate change, which can be characterized by a wide range of impacts, from rising long-term average temperatures [1,2] to changing global ocean levels [3–6], increasing numbers of extreme weather events [7,8] reduction of environmental biodiversity [9–12], reduction of fertility and yield from agricultural production [13,14], and changes in glacial areas [15]. To reduce the negative effects of climate change, a scientific consensus is generally accepted in the form of reducing the use of fossil fuels [16]. As a member of the European Union, the Slovak Republic is committed to the European climate plans arising from the Fit for 55 agenda. Under this legislative package, the Member States of the European Union have set a target of reducing CO 2 emissions by 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 and increasing the share of renewable energy sources (hereinafter RES) in total primary consumption to 40%. According to the set trajectories of development, the European Union should achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. The sub-targets for individual countries are set by the Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) [17]. The Slovak Republic has so far declared a target for RES at 19.2% by 2030, but an updated target should be published in the second quarter of 2023, considering the Fit for 55 agenda. The current share of RES in primary energy consumption is 17.6%. The current Energies 2022, 15, 3584. https://doi.org/10.3390/en15103584 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/energies