THE LAST BLACK FACES OF POLAND - mining industry in Poland

Dawid started his experience with mining just 2 months ago.The Budryk mine where he works, extracts daily between 12 and 15 thousand tons of coal. Ornantowice, Poland, October 2018

In the Budryk mine, it is necessary to go one kilometer below the surface of the earth to find coal.The ore, torn off by a cutting machine, is recovered on a conveyor belt before being reassembled. Ornantowice, Poland, October 2018,

End of work for this group of miners who are waiting for an elevator to go back to the surface after their work shift. Ornantowice, Poland, October 2018

The 4.5 m high coal face at the Staszic mine is slowly being prepared for closure. Mining on this longwall is expected to be completed within the next month. In addition to mining; the miners are also carrying out safety and closure work. The roof is being secured with metal blocks and wood. Katowice; Poland, April 2022;

Ela attended a miner's school and has been working in the coal processing area for 30 years. She repeats the same gestures to sort the coal. Every day, she remains at her post for 7h30 on the 8 hours of daily work with a break of 30 minutes between the third and fourth hour.
Katowice, Poland, October 2018,

The heap of the Marcel mine in Redlin is located in the middle of a town. It is forcefully subjected to natural fires, caused by coal waste and active chemical substances contained in materials stored on the site.After several years of waiting, an outsourcing company is now starting to relocate the slag heap.The works cause a substantial diffusion of toxic gases in the region. Redlin, Poland, October 2018

Stanislaw, Mieczyslaw, and Edward all worked in the mine in their youth.Today homeless, they live next to a slag heap where every day they go to fetch coal for their personal use and metals that they sell about 20 PLN (5 euro) per wheelbarrow. Jankowice, Poland, October 2018

In 2008, part of the Wujek mine located 370 m underground was transformed into a training site. Every day of the week, students from engineering schools or from the Silesian Polytechnic, who want to work in the mining industry go underground to learn the trade. Built underground in a still active mine, it is the only area of its kind in Poland. Katowice, Poland, June 2018

Roland Zagorski has just taken over the position of the head of the leading trade union at the Wujek mine. He is 34 years old, has been married for 15 years, and has two children. Katowice, Poland, October 2018

In the Museum of Coal Mining in Zabrze; the guide is showing the way coal levels have been building up underground for hundreds of thousands of years. Level 510; which in the historical mine today can be seen at a depth of 40 m; is still being exploited in operating mines; however at a level of 900 m below sea level. Such exploitation is much more dangerous; costly and, above all requires much more water and energy. Zabrze; Poland, April 2022;

« Nikiszowiec » is a familok, built by the surrounding coal mines as a house for the miners and their families. In recent years, it has been completely renovated and has been listed on the National Heritage List. Since then, it is considered one of the most pleasant areas of Katowice. It is still mostly inhabited by coal miners, some of whom have been living there for generations. Katowice, Poland, June 2018

A view of an underprivileged district of Bobrek in Bytom. Of the 11 mines opened in the city a few years ago, several have been closed leaving the inhabitants unemployed.The majority of them are poor people displaced from their old homes due to unpaid rents. Most live on social assistance.The city of Bytom is also considered one of the most polluted cities in Poland. Bytom, Poland, January 2018

Buildings are blackened by pollution in the former mining district of Bytom. In Poland, industrial smog kills about 33,000 people every year. Bytom, Poland, January 2018

Mariola lives on the ground floor of a "familok" in Zabrze with her 3 children. Her companion, a former miner, currently lives in England and works as a construction worker. He illegally installed a central heating spell in their apartment in Zabrze. Mariola, therefore, heats with charcoal using the oven placed in the cellar, which is then connected to the radiators of the apartment. Zabrze, Poland, October 2018

Two types of drones are used in each action.The first identifies the possible offense by flying over a neighborhood, the second takes smoke samples and analyzes in real time the chemical substances and particles they contain.The eko patrol group from Katowice is the first in Poland.Today more and more cities are inspired by their approach. Katowice, Poland, October 2018

Oskar (12) is asthmatic and suffers from coal particles floating in his town of Zabrze, especially during autumn and winter. Football fan, because of the pollution, he has to skip outdoor training for almost half of the year. Zabrze, Poland, October 2018

Reduction inoculation of bacteria that are supposed to purify phenol-contaminated water from wastewater during site investigations in the Institute for the Bioremediation of Contaminated Land at the Institute for Ecology of Industrial Areas in Katowice. The same institute will be responsible for verifications of meteorological and air purity parameters in the Horizon 2020 project from EU. Katowice, Poland, April 2022

Jacek Krzyzak and Michal Kotas cut energy crops; which after winter have the lowest humidity and are best suited for conversion into biomass. As part of a study to neutralise post-industrial areas heavily polluted by heavy metals; the Institute for Ecology of Industrial Areas is planting energy crops; which at the same time cleanse the soil of metals and are used to produce biomass.; Poland still produces far too little biomass to reach the standards required by the European Union. The pilot field project is located next to fields used by local farmers to produce crops for human and animal consumption. This cultivated land exceeds the acceptable standard of heavy metal contamination for agricultural soils by 400 times. Bytom; Poland, April 2022;

Two coal-fired power plants of Jaworzno; both considered the most modern in Poland are seen from a mining heap in the town of Jaworzno. This thermal power plant is equipped with six power units with a total installed capacity of 1; 535 MW and it provides electricity to over 2.5 million people in the southern part of Poland. Jaworzno; Poland, April 2022

Patryk Bialas, a former member of “Smog Alarm group in Katowice” (“Alarm Smogowy Katowice”), is fighting to impose the use of renewable energies by mobilizing the city's students against the pollution that causes considerable damage to the population. Katowice, Poland, October 2018

The Silesian Art Museum is based on the site of the former coalmine in the city of Katowice. It is one of the most modern buildings in the city. At weekends, families come to admire the city's panoramic view and participate in a wide range of artistic and cultural activities. Katowice, Poland, October 2018

It has long been considered the national pride of Poland. The mining industry in this Eastern European country is, however, now in decline. At the time of the glory of the crucial urgency for clean energy development, the profession of a minor, even though still respected, is on the decline.

Today 100 000 against 400 000 in 1990, workers of the coal industry nevertheless produce 80% of the country's electricity. Reserves of Coal in Upper Silesia considered a patriotic alternative to gas and oil imported from Russia, was believed sufficient to last for decades and considered a key to energy security in the country. The thought shared by the Polish government, which has made several commitments to help keep the coal industry alive.

Even though in recent years, the number of mines and employees in the area has decreased and that the cost of coal production is now higher than the international average, the Polish authorities and Poles refuse to look for an alternative. At the same time, 33 of the 50 most polluted cities in the EU are located in Poland, some 19 million people depend on coal, often of poor quality for heating in winter, the level of pollution is 2 or 3 times higher than the norm and about 48,000 Poles are estimated to die every year from diseases related to poor air quality.