ČPŽP 60

Úvodník

2/2021

EDITORIAL

Summary

Dear readers, you are opening the 60th issue of our magazine, the second of the year 2021. The main topics of this issue are two currents ecological cases. The Turów coal mine is a large open pit mine in the southwest of Poland, located outside Bogatynia City, Lower Silesia, near by the Czech border. The mine‘s license was set to expire in April 2020, but in March 2020, the Polish government extended it by another six years. The Polish government agreed to PGE Group‘s wish to continue mining at the site until 2044. PGE Group‘s move to expand the mine is facing opposition from the Czech government, as nearby Czech and German communities say that the environmental impact from the mine is severely affecting their quality of life. In February 2021, the Czech Republic sued Poland over the mine at the European Court of Justice, the first time that an EU member state had sued another one over an environmental issue. Article by Jiří Vozák summarizes the development and provides a legal analysis of the whole dispute. In the autumn of 2020, several toxic substances leaked into the Bečva River in Moravia. The most serious incident took place on September 20, 2020, when a large amount of unknown substances (probably cyanides) leaked into this river. In the affected part of the Bečva river, about 38 km long, there was a massive death of fish and other aquatic organisms. As a result of this accident, fishermen removed more than 40 tons of dead fish from the affected area. The investigation into the cyanide leak is still ongoing and is accompanied by numerous doubts and controversies. The question arises as to whether the competent administrative authorities have made sufficient use of all the powers conferred on themby law in a given case. One of the key issues is also whether the administrative authorities in this case should proceed in accordance with Act No. 167/2008 Coll., on the prevention of ecological damage and its remediation, and if so, in what way. In its expression, the Czech Society for Environmental Law concludes that in the event of an accident on the Bečva River in September 2020, the Czech Environmental Inspectorate was obliged to initiate proceedings pursuant to Section 8 of the Act on the prevention of ecological damage and its remediation. It was also obliged to ensure, without undue delay, the implementation of the necessary corrective measures pursuant to Section 7 (6) of the Act on the prevention of ecological damage and its remediation.

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ČESKÉ PRÁVO ŽIVOTNÍHO PROSTŘEDÍ