Penalty 500 thousand a day. Poland will not bend at the Turów mine EU – PRAVDA.sk

Poland will not stop lignite mining at the Turów mine near the Polish-Czech border, as closing it would jeopardize the stability of the country’s energy system. This was stated on Monday by the spokesman of the Polish government Piotr Müller, who was quoted by the PAP agency.

Cars block the road at the brown coal mine Turów near the town of Bogatynia on the Polish-Czech border on May 25, 2021.

The report comes immediately after the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) ordered Poland to pay a daily penalty of € 500,000 to the European Commission (EC) for ignoring the regulation to suspend mining immediately.

“The financial penalties imposed by the Court of Justice of the EU are unjustified and disproportionate to the situation,” Müller said in a statement. He also added that the decisions of the Luxembourg court should not interfere in areas that are crucial for the security of EU member states.

“Energy security is one of these areas,” Müller explained.

“We have said from the beginning that the closure of the Turów mine will jeopardize the stability of the Polish energy system,” Müller added, explaining that it would have negative consequences for millions of Poles as well as for the European Union as a whole.

Read more The Czech Republic has strong assistance in Poland’s lawsuit for coal mining in Turów – the European Commission

A government spokesman in Warsaw noted that the Polish government wanted to reach a peaceful solution to its dispute with the Czech Republic over the Turów mine and that it respected the interests of local communities.

“The ongoing talks with the Czech Republic are proof of this,” Müller said, adding that the aim of the negotiations is to reach an agreement on assessing the mine’s impact on the surrounding region.

At the end of February, the Czech government announced that it had filed a lawsuit against Poland at CJEU in connection with the planned expansion of the Turów mine. The Czech Republic demands the cessation of mining in the mine due to adverse effects on the environment. According to Prague, the mine has a negative impact on border areas, where it contributes to lowering the groundwater level. Environmental activists as well as local residents also complain about noise and dusty environments.

In May, the CJEU ordered Poland to stop mining in the mine immediately, pending a final decision in the present action.