In the case of the complaint filed by PGE GiEK against the decision to suspend the implementation of the Environmental Decision for Kopania in Turów, the Provincial Administrative Court refused to suspend the implementation of the contested decision and referred the case to the Supreme Administrative Court for consideration.
catastrophic actions
The energy complex in Turów is an important part of the structure of the national energy system. It guarantees energy security for Lower Silesia and supplies about 7-8 percent. energy demand in Poland and supplying electricity to 3.7 million households. The existence of the Complex is also crucial for cross-border energy transport.
The activity of the Turów mine and power plant is crucial for Poland’s energy security. Immediate cessation of the mine’s operations without a long-term closure plan would lead to an environmental disaster for the entire region and would lead to the loss of jobs for up to 80,000 people.
– says Wojciech Dąbrowski, Chairman of the Board of Directors of PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna.
We will defend Turów, we will defend Poland from irresponsible actions with catastrophic consequences
– adds Wojciech Dąbrowski.
The sudden closure of the Turów mine amounts to an ecological disaster
An immediate and violent closure of the Turów mine would lead to an ecological disaster. Cessation of mining would result in the cessation of drainage, leading to landslides over multiple escarpments and the complete destruction of the mining facility. It would result in an environmental disaster with irreversible consequences for the entire region, as well as the border areas of the Czech Republic and Germany and the Nysa Łużycka riverbed:
• The Nysa Łużycka River, below the landslide area, would not receive water for many years, leading to the destruction of all ecosystems in the lower reaches.
• Residents of many towns, for whom Nysa Łużycka is a source of water supply, would be deprived of it with no prospect of any improvement in the situation soon.
To prevent this, it is necessary to properly secure the excavations. Such a process must take place many years in advance due to geotechnical and environmental risks (drainage), which, if suddenly closed, could lead to an uncontrolled collapse of the mine slopes and an environmental disaster.
Lack of water, heat and loss of jobs across the region
Closing the mine, and thus the Turów power plant, will also cause an economic and social catastrophe in the region. A rapid liquidation of the Complex’s operations, omitting the transformation program spread over the years, would mean the collapse of the local labor market and the bankruptcy of hundreds of companies. More than 5,000 people are at risk of losing their jobs. people working in the mine and power plant. However, including workers employed in companies that partner with the Complex and their families, job losses could affect approximately 80,000 residents of the region. The Turów power plant supplies electricity to hospitals, schools, households and businesses. The functioning of Polish housing and public utility facilities depends on stable operation. In addition, the Turów complex is the only heat supplier in Bogatynia and Zgorzelec. The cessation of the complex’s activities will deprive the inhabitants of the region of heat, without the possibility of providing another alternative supplier.
Lack of social consent for the closure of Turów – results of the study after the decision of the Provincial Administrative Court
Most Poles share their doubts about the negative effects of the decision of the Provincial Administrative Court to close the mine in Turów for procedural reasons, according to a study commissioned by PGE:
• 57 percent of the respondents object to decisions about strategic companies made by the courts, not for substantive, but for formal reasons.
• 60 percent of respondents oppose the ability for courts to decide to close businesses overnight.
The data comes from the Omnibus survey commissioned by PGE on June 10 and 11 among a representative sample of 1,039 adult Poles.
READ ALSO:
– Is Turów harmful to the environment? Nonsense! Germany and the Czech Republic have more lignite mines in this region than Poland
— Prof. Grabowska points to the decision of the Provincial Administrative Court regarding Turów: with one decision, the judge wants to stop the operation of a large factory
— OUR INTERVIEW. President of PGE on the “judgment on the Turów mine”: we now have a second attempt to liquidate the mine and of course the power plant
Source: wPolityce