Despite the Polish and Czech governments shaking hands in early 2022 on a 45 million euro deal to end their Turów coal mine dispute, one year later not a single piece of the water protection system in the agreement has been installed. The mine continues to operate without a proper licence, draining water supplies and damaging nearby houses.
The PGE-operated mine is wedged between communities in Czechia, Germany and Poland, and has already caused water levels in the region to fall more than twice the amount that its flawed Environmental Impact Assessment says they will by 2044. People living on the Czech side of the border are angry that the agreement hasn’t resulted in any tangible improvements in the region, and that the Czech government continues to refuse to divulge the full details of the deal.
“The Polish government agreed to install a water protection system at Turów as part of its deal with Czechia, despite the fact that the system is widely understood not to be up to the task. But PGE hasn’t even bothered implementing that,” said Milan Starec, resident of Uhelná and a local activist. “Everyday, our property loses further value because of PGE’s illegal operations. Where is the compensation for locals like us who suffer from it? And why are the institutions of the EU not upholding EU law?”.
“PGE is illegally depleting people’s water supplies, and damaging their homes, all in the name of profit. The law says precisely what coal operators like PGE can and can’t do. So why is it that between them, neither the courts, national governments and the European Union are able to enforce the law at Turow?”, said Petra Kalenská, lawyer at Frank Bold.
„The case of the Turow lignite mine remains as a demonstration of the unfettered power of the fossil fuel industry to destroy property and the environment in three countries, while neighbouring states and the EU fail to protect their citizens from the impacts of the industry. Without the support of their governments or the European Commission, local people have no chance against the fossil fuel industry,“ said Nikol Krejčová of Greenpeace Czech Republic.