Smog remains problem in north Moravia

Prague, Feb 6 (CTK) - The quality of the air in the Moravia-Silesia Region in north Moravia that has been very bad for many days has improved Saturday afternoon, but the airborne dust values still cross the maximum permissible level of 50 microgrammes per cubic metre at some places.

The air in the region has long been one of the worst in the Czech Republic in spite of a year-on-year improvement in 2008.

Last week the daily concentration of airborne dust crossed the permissible levels up to 11 times.

This prompted the Chamber of Deputies to call on the government and particularly on Environment Minister Jan Dusik (Greens, SZ) to quickly start dealing with the unfavourable smog situation in the region at its session in end-January.

Prime Minister Jan Fischer said one of possible ways of dealing with the situation are negotiations with Poland with which the region borders.

This week, Fischer said the government might hold its regular weekly meeting in Ostrava, the capital of the region, in the first half of March.

On Monday the government said it will not support in the Chamber of Deputies the proposal by the region that wants to push through an amendment to the respective law allowing controllers to enter houses even without the owner's consent and check household heating facilities.

Fischer said this would a breakthrough in privacy.

Moravia-Silesia governor Jaroslav Palas (Social Democrats, CSSD) says local heating facilities are the biggest air polluter, followed by large industrial firms and road traffic.

"I am convinced that the right of an individual to privacy ends where the rights of the others to a pure living environment are breached," deputy governor Miroslav Novak (CSSD) told CTK previously.

He said experts estimate that small polluters contribute to the pollution of the air with dust by up to one third in the region.

People often burn in their boilers almost anything that can burns, he said.

Meanwhile, the Environment Ministry has drafted a compromise version of a new bill on the air that introduces stricter parameters for boilers to prevent harmful substances from being burnt in households.

Those using old coal-burning a boiler who would fail to have it revised in time would pay a fine. The collected money would be spent on air improving projects.

The ministry also offers people to finance their boilers' revision and subsidies to the replacement of old boilers.

The new bill also allows municipalities to set low-emission zones, for instance the town centre or a housing estate, where only low-emission cars would have access.

The Chamber of Deputies will only discuss the bill after the end-May general elections, however.

The recurring smog in north Moravia has also been taken up now, four months ahead of the general election, some say in connection with the Civic Democrats' (ODS) regional leader Pavel Drobil's plans.

He wants to open a debate on the construction of a nuclear power plant in Blahutovice and black coal mining beneath the Beskydy Mountains.

Both topics were spoken about a few years ago, but were eeventually abandoned.

Drobil, however, says both of them must be discussed also because of a lack of electric power in north Moravia and because of the high incidence of smog in the Ostrava vicinity.

"I want that citizens and politicians know that the idea exists, that it is a threat for someone and an opportunity for others," Drobil said.

Novak confirmed the construction of a nuclear power plant and black coal mining in the Frenstat pod Radhostem in teh Beskydy Mountains are parts of the state energy concept.

He added, however, that he prefers completion of the existing nuclear power plants.

The construction of a third and fourth reactors in Temelin, south Bohemia, has now been discussed.