At the beginning of 2022, subsidies from the Provincial Environmental Protection Funds for people replacing their old furnaces with new coal-fired furnaces were eliminated. Almost exactly six months later, the government temporarily suspended the stringent quality standards for commercially available solid fuels, which meant allowing the sale of lower-quality coal. How should these two extreme moves be interpreted? As a retreat from decarbonization policies, or merely a temporary shift in the approach to hard coal?
One might argue that the Russian military’s armed invasion of Ukraine, which began on February 24, 2022, dealt a blow to decarbonization. This would be tempting, but it must be remembered that similar hopes had been expressed two years earlier. In March 2020, as part of the (as it turned out, excessive) response to the threat posed by the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, periodic closures or restrictions began in various sectors of the economy. This continued intermittently in Poland and other countries for months thereafter. Even then, it was believed that the crisis triggered by governments’ response to the emergence of another coronavirus would ultimately undermine decarbonization plans. Professor Witold Modzelewski, former Deputy Minister of Finance from 1992 to 1996, stated in March 2020 that the European Union, as a supranational organization, had failed in confronting the coronavirus. As a result, in his view, the debate on previously undisputed topics, including the EU’s decarbonization direction, would open up.
“Now, as the EU weakens before our eyes and its authority dwindles, the problem of decarbonization will return. Most countries cannot afford this operation. The pandemic will incur new expenses. And if certain expenses are unnecessary, such as those related to decarbonization policy, they will not be incurred,” predicted Professor Witold Modzelewski at the time. However, this prediction by the renowned analyst did not come true.
On the contrary, in September 2020, an agreement was reached between trade unions and the government regarding the complete closure of hard coal mining in Upper Silesia. The order of closure of individual mines by 2049 was then established. In other parts of Poland, a few voices of disbelief were raised: how is it possible that miners agreed to eliminate their jobs when Poland has and will continue to need coal? There were also mocking voices, claiming that we supposedly had enough coal deposits for two hundred years, yet just a dozen years after joining the European Union, it turned out there was a shortage of coal.
It’s also worth examining the image of hard coal mining that was being portrayed in the public sphere. Miners were portrayed as a group of very well-paid individuals, prone to demonstrations and even brawls in defense of wage privileges, dating back to the People’s Republic of Poland. Some members of society believed that miners lived off the state, which subsidized mining. From there, it was a short step to the conclusion that coal mines should be closed without regret.
The fact that coal mining itself was profitable has somewhat escaped public discourse. It was the European Union that artificially made it significantly more expensive. This was achieved by imposing the essentially speculative obligation to trade carbon dioxide emission allowances.
A sudden shift in attitudes toward hard coal occurred in mid-2022 during the Russian aggression against Ukraine. It’s undeniable that the coal crisis was self-inflicted. The reasons are simple. For the previous years, Poland had offered no resistance to the EU-imposed decarbonization policy. Apparently, there was a lack of strategic analysis predicting the consequences of this move. Another issue is that the coal shortage was the result of a government decision. It wasn’t Russia that suspended hard coal supplies to Poland, but Poland was the first to abandon its imports from that country.
Subsequent moves could be perceived as an accelerated reversal of earlier decisions. For example, the Act on the Fuel Quality Monitoring and Control System, amended in July 2018, prevented producers from trading in raw materials that significantly contribute to environmental pollution. Coal sludge, flotation concentrates, and mixtures containing less than 85 percent hard coal were then added to the prohibited list. Less than four years later, on June 29, 2022, quality standards for solid fuels were suspended for sixty days. Comments suggested that people would now burn whatever they wanted. In practice, however, this move meant that mostly hard coal with higher sulfur content could be returned to fuel depots.
For those unrelated to the mining industry, it was difficult to understand why, given the effects of the embargo on Russian coal imports, Polish mines were unable to dramatically increase production overnight. This stemmed from a lack of understanding of the specifics of black coal mining. To put it simply, society’s perception of the operation of hard coal mines is roughly the same as that of quarries: if machines and workers can be brought into a disused quarry overnight and stone extraction immediately resume, then the situation in coal mines should be similar.
The government therefore acted on two fronts: on the one hand, it emphasized the launch of full production capacity in Polish mines, and on the other, it increased imports of this raw material. Coal trains were rather enigmatically given priority, which – as a representative of PKP Polish Railway Lines explained – did not mean priority in the allocation of train routes. This may have been incomprehensible to those outside the railway industry.
Miners would certainly have welcomed the proverbial tearing up of the page on the mine closure schedule adopted in September 2022 and the government’s unequivocal declaration that, in the face of a Russian war, Poland was definitively withdrawing from the EU’s decarbonization policy. Nothing of the sort happened. Consequently, concerns emerged in the media that placing mines on full alert might only mean that they would operate at full capacity for a short period of time, only to be closed down even faster.
Deputy Prime Minister Jacek Sasin failed to allay these concerns. In August 2022, in a press interview, he was asked whether a full-scale return to coal was possible, given the enormous reserves of high-quality coal found in the Lublin region, for example. Jacek Sasin responded that much would depend on what happens in the European Union, adding: “Let me remind you where we are: we committed to a social agreement with miners, and this is recognized by the European Commission as our commitment, to completely phase out coal mining by 2049. We are to reduce production every year and close mines.”
This could be interpreted as a conservative approach. Some have pointed out that this reveals the weakness of a country that, under external pressure from an international organization like the EU, agrees to liquidate its only strategic energy sector.
In any case, it is impossible to say at this point whether we are witnessing a return to coal or just an accelerated retreat.
Tomasz Rzeczycki
Post-mining areas located in city centers have always been a lucrative target for local governments and businesses. Shopping centers, residential buildings, sports centers, museums, and other cultural institutions have sprung up in the former mines. Due to the space they occupy, these have often been essentially new city districts. Such a scenario has also been increasingly discussed in Ruda Śląska recently. The new district would be built on land formerly occupied by the “Pokój” Coal Mine.
Only old photographs and archival recordings can convince anyone that Katowice’s city center once housed mines. Over the past twenty years, the former mines have been occupied by retail, office space, residential buildings (Silesia City Center), and cultural facilities (the Silesian Museum, the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra). From designated industrial zones, these areas have once again become a publicly accessible part of the city.
The situation in Ruda Śląska is completely different. It’s still one of Poland’s most heavily mined cities, where the sight of miners going on shift is commonplace. The same is true for the neighborhood of residential areas and mine shafts. However, even here, the number of mines is steadily declining. Nearly six years ago, the last ton of coal was transported to the surface through the “Pokój” coal mine shaft, and that was the definitive beginning of the end for this mine. At the beginning of 2017, the haulage of coal from the seams mined by “Pokój” was redirected to the “Bielszowice” coal mine (both plants had been operating under the combined “Ruda” mine since mid-2016), and over 700 hectares of land, two shafts, and over a hundred surface facilities were taken over by the Mine Restructuring Company. Last year, “Pokój” finally finished digging, and in March this year, the remains of the “gruba” (137 structures on the surface and 257 underground structures) together with 20 hectares of land were transferred to the SRK state.
Kandydaci snują wizje drugiego życia dla kopalni. Ratusz zamówił koncepcję masterplanu
Olbrzymi teren po byłej kopalni „Pokój” znajduje się niemal dokładnie w środku rozciągniętego wzdłuż osi północ-południe miasta. To sprawia, że od dawna pojawiały się pytania o to, co stanie się z nim po zakończeniu wydobycia przez „grubę”. Teraz kiedy zakład faktycznie przeszedł do historii intensywność tych pytań jeszcze się spotęgowała.
O randze tematu najlepiej zresztą świadczy fakt, że zagospodarowanie gruntów po dawnej kopalni pojawiło się w programie wyborczym niemal wszystkich kandydatów ubiegających się o prezydenturę w Rudzie Śląskiej. Pierwsza tura przedterminowych wyborów zaplanowana była na 11 września, więc w chwili zsyłania do druku tego wydania Biuletynu nie znaliśmy jeszcze ich rozstrzygnięcia. Najczęściej można było w tym kontekście usłyszeć o stworzeniu „nowej dzielnicy”, choć warto odnotować też pomysł zamiany tego miejsca w centralny park miejski – swoistą rudzką wersję nowojorskiego Central Parku. Pierwsze koncepcyjne przymiarki do tego poczyniono zresztą jeszcze w ubiegłym roku. Wówczas to rudzki ratusz zlecił opracowanie koncepcji masterplanu dla tego terenu.
I taka koncepcja powstała. Jej autorem jest dr hab. Michał Stangel, urbanista, profesor Politechniki Śląskiej w Katedrze Urbanistyki i Planowania Przestrzennego na Wydziale Architektury, stypendysta Fundacji Bauhaus-Dessau oraz Fulbrighta w Massachusetts Institute of Technology, laureat kilkudziesięciu konkursów urbanistycznych (zajął m.in. I miejsce w międzynarodowym konkursie Kraków – Nowa Huta Przyszłości), mający w swym zawodowym portfolio pracę m.in. przy projektach rewitalizacji Nassau i terenów olimpijskich w Londynie.
You will be able to live here and spend your free time pleasantly
“This is to be a new, fully-fledged urban district with various functions,” Professor Stangel summarizes the general premise of his concept. He emphasizes the importance of this area’s “return” to the city. He emphasizes that the idea isn’t to build it up with a supermarket, warehouse, or industrial plant, but to make it an integral part of the city. A city understood here not merely as a space located within the administrative boundaries of a municipal commune, but as an area functionally connected to the areas where residents’ lives are concentrated.
According to the master plan, more than half of the former mine site would be occupied by residential development. Both in the form of multi-family, terraced quarters and those embracing more experimental forms of shared housing (small cooperatives or co-housing). The development would be located in those parts of the former mine site that are closest to nearby neighborhoods.
The central part of the plot would be intersected by public space, including, among other things, a public space. The “Wanda” shaft, former workshop halls, management buildings, rescue station, bathhouse, and chemical laboratory. Its western end would rest against a revitalized zinc slag heap (“Góra Antonia”). The zone would combine gastronomy, entertainment, commerce, culture, business, light, non-intrusive industry, and post-industrial heritage. Some buildings could house offices and co-working spaces, others could house shops, restaurants, fitness clubs, gyms, and still others (such as the workshop hall) could house open spaces suitable for organizing fairs, meetings, events, concerts, performances, and exhibitions. The key public space would be the preserved “Wanda” shaft, dominating the entire area due to its height. Together with the bathhouse buildings, it would constitute a multifunctional public complex, combining the functions of a technology center, a social activity center, and a business incubator.
The former “Pokój” like the Porcelain Factory, Off Piotrkowska, or Nowa Karolina in Ostrava
The entire project would be complemented by exposed “open-air” post-industrial relics—spools, machine components, as well as elements such as activity zones, playgrounds, outdoor exercise areas, city bike rentals, and an outdoor art gallery. Cultural events, fairs, and food truck gatherings would be held in this setting.
“The area will combine the ambitions of a modern, sustainable living, work, and recreation space with the preservation and exposition of the identity of the site—the “Pokój” coal mine. (…) The space initiating the process of change (…) will be transformed into a multifunctional, vibrant place for services, retail, lofts, cultural events, neighborhood fairs, and so on—a new, important location on the Industrial Monuments Trail—this is the vision envisioned by the author of the masterplan concept.
“As for regional references, the closest would be the Mining Factory Full of Life under construction in Dąbrowa,” Prof. Stangel. Among other Polish models for the development of this space, he mentions Sztauwajery and the Porcelain Factory in Katowice, and Off Piotrkowska in Łódź. Among those from outside Poland, he mentions:
– Nowa Karolina in Ostrava, a former mining area where a new district was created, encompassing residential, office, commercial, and public spaces.
The concept places significant emphasis on maintaining existing trees and utilizing them to shape the new public space, prioritizing pedestrian and bicycle traffic, the presence of so-called “green-blue infrastructure” (rainwater squares, green roofs, local retention using former mine ponds), as well as the preservation, adaptation, and display of “valuable post-mining buildings,” and preserving the possibility of adapting other buildings for new functions. Therefore, the concept specifically identifies the historic buildings located here and those for which preservation and adaptation to new functions are worth considering. Among the latter, he lists, among others, management building, mechanical workshop, bathhouse and rescue station.
The area after the “rough” is a chance for the dream “compact city”
The new district on the site of the “Pokój” mine aligns with the concept of the 15-minute city. This concept is being actively promoted by urban planners, a growing number of local government officials, and groups promoting sustainable urban development. It posits that the ideal city is one in which residents can handle their most important matters within a 15-minute walk of their home, without the need for frequent car journeys.
“Not everyone can have a stadium or a philharmonic hall near their home, but everyone should have access to a school, preschool, clinic, or retail outlet,” Andrzej Kolat, Director of the Department of Spatial Strategy and Policy of the Upper Silesian-Zagłębie Metropolis, recently explained this idea.
This is therefore the exact opposite of locating new housing investments on the outskirts of cities, which results in their sprawl into endless suburbs. Municipalities, officials, and city planners are wringing their hands over the years-long process of urban sprawl. And this isn’t just for aesthetic reasons. It’s primarily about money. As these “near-forest” neighborhoods increasingly recede from city centers, they require the installation of roads, water and sewage systems, public transportation, and (at least theoretically) social infrastructure such as nurseries, schools, preschools, and health centers.
The costs of this spatial chaos—as spatial planning experts define “incorrect and suboptimal location of buildings and technical infrastructure (including housing)—are also borne by the residents themselves, for whom the need to run an errand, take a child to nursery or preschool, visit a clinic, etc., requires commuting “to the city.” Without a car (or preferably two), nothing is possible. Fuel costs, wasted time, and additional exhaust emissions—all of this must be factored into such a rolling calculation. Suffice it to say that in a report published this year by the Polish Economic Institute, experts estimated the annual costs of spatial chaos in our country at over 84 billion złoty.
In this context, several dozen hectares of land for potential development in the very center of the city seem like a gift from fate. The area is developed, and roads run nearby, providing quick access to the A4 motorway and the DTŚ expressway, and public transportation lines run nearby. Within a radius of about a kilometer, there’s a shopping mall with a multiplex cinema, a municipal marketplace, a nursery, schools, an athletics stadium, a swimming pool, a cinema, city hall, and numerous smaller shops.
“Given the challenges of sustainable development, reducing emissions and energy use, the best way to develop a city is through a so-called compact city. And this location offers precisely such an opportunity, thanks to its proximity to the city on both sides. An additional advantage is the greenery on both sides of this area. This could be a great place to live, allowing for a sustainable, eco-friendly lifestyle,” praises Michał Stangel.
Brzeszcze and Rydułtowy also want to build new housing estates on former mining land.
Due to the scale of the project, the development of the “new district” on the site of the “Pokój” coal mine would be divided into stages. The first phase would be the creation of the public space zone described above. However, no dates (or approximate costs) for this project are available in the master plan. Its author himself cautions that this is only a preliminary vision, which will need to be supplemented in the future with industry-specific analyses (e.g., a greenery inventory, land utilities, road studies, and soil tests). Later, it should be added, changes to the zoning plan, the municipal revitalization program, likely several other planning documents, and ultimately, funding for the implementation of all these ideas would be necessary.
It should also be clearly stated that discussing the future of the “Pokój” coal mine today is akin to skinning a bear, as it is not the city, but the Mine Restructuring Company (Spółka Restrukturyzacji Kopalń) that still owns it. A transfer to the city is certainly possible; in fact, the list of plots transferred to local governments by SRK is long and constantly growing. In June, the Brzeszcze commune acquired nearly 65,000 square meters of land and 22 buildings from SKR, which plans to use the land for housing and sports and recreational facilities. The Rydułtowy commune also has plans to build a housing estate, having acquired land and buildings worth over PLN 8 million from SRK over the past few years. However, in the case of the former “Pokoj” site, given the size and value of the property, a decision would likely have to be made by the Minister of State Assets (for smaller plots, a decision by the management board would suffice, for medium-sized plots – by the SRK supervisory board).
Michał Wroński, journalist at SlaZag.pl
Post-mining areas located in city centers have always been a lucrative target for local governments and businesses. Shopping centers, residential buildings, sports centers, museums, and other cultural institutions have sprung up in the former mines. Due to the space they occupy, these have often been essentially new city districts. Such a scenario has also been increasingly discussed in Ruda Śląska recently. The new district would be built on land formerly occupied by the “Pokój” Coal Mine.
Only old photographs and archival recordings can convince anyone that Katowice’s city center once housed mines. Over the past twenty years, the former mines have been occupied by retail, office space, residential buildings (Silesia City Center), and cultural facilities (the Silesian Museum, the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra). From designated industrial zones, these areas have once again become a publicly accessible part of the city.
The situation in Ruda Śląska is completely different. It’s still one of Poland’s most heavily mined cities, where the sight of miners going on shift is commonplace. The same is true for the neighborhood of residential areas and mine shafts. However, even here, the number of mines is steadily declining. Nearly six years ago, the last ton of coal was transported to the surface through the “Pokój” coal mine shaft, and that was the definitive beginning of the end for this mine. At the beginning of 2017, the haulage of coal from the seams mined by “Pokój” was redirected to the “Bielszowice” coal mine (both plants had been operating under the combined “Ruda” mine since mid-2016), and over 700 hectares of land, two shafts, and over a hundred surface facilities were taken over by the Mine Restructuring Company. Last year, “Pokój” finally finished digging, and in March this year, the remains of the “gruba” (137 structures on the surface and 257 underground structures) together with 20 hectares of land were transferred to the SRK state.
Candidates are envisioning a second life for the mine. City Hall has commissioned a master plan.
The vast area of the former “Pokój” mine is located almost exactly in the center of the city, which stretches along a north-south axis. This has long raised questions about what would happen to it after the mine ceased mining operations. Now that the mine has effectively become history, these questions have intensified.
The importance of this topic is best demonstrated by the fact that the development of the former mine lands appeared in the election platforms of almost all candidates running for mayor in Ruda Śląska. The first round of early elections was scheduled for September 11th, so at the time of going to press, the results were not yet known. The most common reference in this context was the creation of a “new district,” although the idea of transforming this site into a central city park – a kind of Ruda version of New York’s Central Park – is also worth noting. The first conceptual steps were taken last year. At that time, Ruda City Hall commissioned the development of a master plan for the area.
And so the concept was born. Its author is Dr. Michał Stangel, an urban planner, professor at the Silesian University of Technology in the Department of Urban and Spatial Planning, Faculty of Architecture, recipient of scholarships from the Bauhaus-Dessau Foundation and a Fulbright grant from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, winner of dozens of urban design competitions (including first place in the international competition “Krakow – Nowa Huta Przyszłości”), and whose professional portfolio includes work on projects such as the revitalization of Nassau and the Olympic grounds in London.
You will be able to live here and spend your free time pleasantly
“This is to be a new, fully-fledged urban district with various functions,” Professor Stangel summarizes the general premise of his concept. He emphasizes the importance of this area’s “return” to the city. He emphasizes that the idea isn’t to build it up with a supermarket, warehouse, or industrial plant, but to make it an integral part of the city. A city understood here not merely as a space located within the administrative boundaries of a municipal commune, but as an area functionally connected to the areas where residents’ lives are concentrated.
According to the master plan, more than half of the former mine site would be occupied by residential development. Both in the form of multi-family, terraced quarters and those embracing more experimental forms of shared housing (small cooperatives or co-housing). The development would be located in those parts of the former mine site that are closest to nearby neighborhoods.
The central part of the plot would be intersected by public space, including, among other things, a public space. The “Wanda” shaft, former workshop halls, management buildings, rescue station, bathhouse, and chemical laboratory. Its western end would rest against a revitalized zinc slag heap (“Góra Antonia”). The zone would combine gastronomy, entertainment, commerce, culture, business, light, non-intrusive industry, and post-industrial heritage. Some buildings could house offices and co-working spaces, others could house shops, restaurants, fitness clubs, gyms, and still others (such as the workshop hall) could house open spaces suitable for organizing fairs, meetings, events, concerts, performances, and exhibitions. The key public space would be the preserved “Wanda” shaft, dominating the entire area due to its height. Together with the bathhouse buildings, it would constitute a multifunctional public complex, combining the functions of a technology center, a social activity center, and a business incubator.
The former “Pokój” like the Porcelain Factory, Off Piotrkowska, or Nowa Karolina in Ostrava
The entire project would be complemented by exposed “open-air” post-industrial relics—spools, machine components, as well as elements such as activity zones, playgrounds, outdoor exercise areas, city bike rentals, and an outdoor art gallery. Cultural events, fairs, and food truck gatherings would be held in this setting.
“The area will combine the ambitions of a modern, sustainable living, work, and recreation space with the preservation and exposition of the identity of the site—the “Pokój” coal mine. (…) The space initiating the process of change (…) will be transformed into a multifunctional, vibrant place for services, retail, lofts, cultural events, neighborhood fairs, and so on—a new, important location on the Industrial Monuments Trail—this is the vision envisioned by the author of the masterplan concept.
“As for regional references, the closest would be the Mining Factory Full of Life under construction in Dąbrowa,” Prof. Stangel. Among other Polish models for the development of this space, he mentions Sztauwajery and the Porcelain Factory in Katowice, and Off Piotrkowska in Łódź. Among those from outside Poland, he mentions:
– Nowa Karolina in Ostrava, a former mining area where a new district was created, encompassing residential, office, commercial, and public spaces.
The concept places significant emphasis on maintaining existing trees and utilizing them to shape the new public space, prioritizing pedestrian and bicycle traffic, the presence of so-called “green-blue infrastructure” (rainwater squares, green roofs, local retention using former mine ponds), as well as the preservation, adaptation, and display of “valuable post-mining buildings,” and preserving the possibility of adapting other buildings for new functions. Therefore, the concept specifically identifies the historic buildings located here and those for which preservation and adaptation to new functions are worth considering. Among the latter, he lists, among others, management building, mechanical workshop, bathhouse and rescue station.
The area after the “rough” is a chance for the dream “compact city”
The new district on the site of the “Pokój” mine aligns with the concept of the 15-minute city. This concept is being actively promoted by urban planners, a growing number of local government officials, and groups promoting sustainable urban development. It posits that the ideal city is one in which residents can handle their most important matters within a 15-minute walk of their home, without the need for frequent car journeys.
“Not everyone can have a stadium or a philharmonic hall near their home, but everyone should have access to a school, preschool, clinic, or retail outlet,” Andrzej Kolat, Director of the Department of Spatial Strategy and Policy of the Upper Silesian-Zagłębie Metropolis, recently explained this idea.
This is therefore the exact opposite of locating new housing investments on the outskirts of cities, which results in their sprawl into endless suburbs. Municipalities, officials, and city planners are wringing their hands over the years-long process of urban sprawl. And this isn’t just for aesthetic reasons. It’s primarily about money. As these “near-forest” neighborhoods increasingly recede from city centers, they require the installation of roads, water and sewage systems, public transportation, and (at least theoretically) social infrastructure such as nurseries, schools, preschools, and health centers.
The costs of this spatial chaos—as spatial planning experts define “incorrect and suboptimal location of buildings and technical infrastructure (including housing)—are also borne by the residents themselves, for whom the need to run an errand, take a child to nursery or preschool, visit a clinic, etc., requires commuting “to the city.” Without a car (or preferably two), nothing is possible. Fuel costs, wasted time, and additional exhaust emissions—all of this must be factored into such a rolling calculation. Suffice it to say that in a report published this year by the Polish Economic Institute, experts estimated the annual costs of spatial chaos in our country at over 84 billion złoty.
In this context, several dozen hectares of land for potential development in the very center of the city seem like a gift from fate. The area is developed, and roads run nearby, providing quick access to the A4 motorway and the DTŚ expressway, and public transportation lines run nearby. Within a radius of about a kilometer, there’s a shopping mall with a multiplex cinema, a municipal marketplace, a nursery, schools, an athletics stadium, a swimming pool, a cinema, city hall, and numerous smaller shops.
“Given the challenges of sustainable development, reducing emissions and energy use, the best way to develop a city is through a so-called compact city. And this location offers precisely such an opportunity, thanks to its proximity to the city on both sides. An additional advantage is the greenery on both sides of this area. This could be a great place to live, allowing for a sustainable, eco-friendly lifestyle,” praises Michał Stangel.
Brzeszcze and Rydułtowy also want to build new housing estates on former mining land.
Due to the scale of the project, the development of the “new district” on the site of the “Pokój” coal mine would be divided into stages. The first phase would be the creation of the public space zone described above. However, no dates (or approximate costs) for this project are available in the master plan. Its author himself cautions that this is only a preliminary vision, which will need to be supplemented in the future with industry-specific analyses (e.g., a greenery inventory, land utilities, road studies, and soil tests). Later, it should be added, changes to the zoning plan, the municipal revitalization program, likely several other planning documents, and ultimately, funding for the implementation of all these ideas would be necessary.
It should also be clearly stated that discussing the future of the “Pokój” coal mine today is akin to skinning a bear, as it is not the city, but the Mine Restructuring Company (Spółka Restrukturyzacji Kopalń) that still owns it. A transfer to the city is certainly possible; in fact, the list of plots transferred to local governments by SRK is long and constantly growing. In June, the Brzeszcze commune acquired nearly 65,000 square meters of land and 22 buildings from SKR, which plans to use the land for housing and sports and recreational facilities. The Rydułtowy commune also has plans to build a housing estate, having acquired land and buildings worth over PLN 8 million from SRK over the past few years. However, in the case of the former “Pokoj” site, given the size and value of the property, a decision would likely have to be made by the Minister of State Assets (for smaller plots, a decision by the management board would suffice, for medium-sized plots – by the SRK supervisory board).
Michał Wroński, journalist at SlaZag.pl
The problem of pollution of the Oder River (and the frantic search for those responsible) has sparked increased interest in the issue of mine water salinity. Mining operations involve pumping mine water to the surface, the quantity and composition of which depend on the specific characteristics of a given area – this is an undeniable fact. Scientists are working to solve the problem of mine water pollution by testing new, more effective technological solutions. These solutions are also supported by legal regulations based on the Water Framework Directive, which emphasizes the special protection of Europe’s water resources. To minimize the negative impact of mine water on the environment, various technical and organizational measures are suggested to limit the discharge of saline water after it is pumped to the surface, as well as technological solutions for its treatment.
Supporting the implementation of the directive’s provisions in mining and promoting new solutions aimed at implementing the concept of a circular economy are the goals of the international Life Brine-Mining project, implemented in Poland by the Central Mining Institute (GIG), the Polish Mining Group, and the Silesian University of Technology.
In June 2022, a consultation meeting was held at the Ziemowit Coal Mine headquarters with stakeholders, representatives of all parties interested in solving the problem of salty mine water. This included both the owners of these waters and their potential users. During the meeting, a mobile pilot saltwater purification system, developed as part of the Life Brine-Mining project and tested at the Ziemowit mine, was presented. The pilot Brine-Mining system combines desalination technologies, a Zero Liquid Discharge system, and full recovery of minerals and salts contained in brine. The Brine-Mining system is also energy-efficient – it is expected to consume less energy than the current minewater desalination technology used at the Dębieńsko desalination plant.
Members of the project consortium guided visitors through the pilot installation and informed them about the proposed innovative technologies within the project, its expected results, and the potential for transferring knowledge and experience to other sectors beyond hard coal mining.
“Our project is co-financed by the European Union under the LIFE Environment and Climate Action Programme. The specific nature of LIFE projects paved the way for the development of a pilot demonstration installation,” says Dr. Grzegorz Gzyl, Project Manager at GIG. “In this case, there is only one pilot project, in Poland, at a selected mine of the Polish Mining Group. By demonstrating the effectiveness of the new technology, we want to enable the hard coal mining sector to improve the efficiency of mine water management,” he adds.
The project consortium believes that the new mine water treatment system will allow for the elimination and full recovery of resources captured at source in saline waters from hard coal mining. But there is also another effect of this technology. This is the direct recovery of end products, such as salt and water—pure and reusable products.
Currently, the most saline water from level 650 of the Piast-Ziemowit mine is discharged in a controlled manner (hydrotechnical system), utilizing the former Czeczott mine as a retention and dosing reservoir in the Wola mine. Using the mine’s own mine water limits the extraction of water with drinking and industrial water parameters from other sources. Mine water is selectively extracted, enabling the mines to use freshwater and waters with lower mineral content.
The project involves nine partners representing three countries: Greece, the Netherlands, and Poland. The project is coordinated by the National University of Technology in Athens and, as he explained during a study visit to the Dębieńsko Desalination Plant, PGWIR S.A. Dimitrios Xevgenos, CEO of SEALEAU from the Netherlands, said: “The organizers hope this will be a good opportunity to exchange experiences in the treatment of saline mine waters and to establish further cooperation within the project. “This visit was an important case study for the project, as Dębieńsko is the first plant in the world to use the Zero Liquid Discharge system to treat saline mine waters, also capable of recovering food-grade salt,” emphasizes Dr. Gzyl.
The experts are currently working on further project work, including developing an economic efficiency analysis, testing technologies for additional types of saline mine water from a different level of the Ziemowit mine, and meeting with other industrial partners interested in treating their saline mine water.
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