Prague, June 11 (CTK) – Protest meetings against the lifting of coal mining limits were held in several Czech towns, with the largest gatherings taking place in Prague, Brno, Plzen and Litvinov yesterday.
The campaign was organised by the Limity jsme my (We Are the Limits) initiative and supported by the extra-parliamentary Green Party.
The limits were set by the Czech government in 1991 and they guaranteed to towns and villages on whose territories are brown coal deposits that they would not be pulled down because of mining.
But Industry and Trade Minister Jan Mladek (Social Democrats, CSSD) has recently proposed four scenarios of further development: complete lifting of the limits, maintaining of the limits, lifting the limits for the Bilina mine and partly for the CSA mine, both north Bohemia, or only for Bilina.
The centre-left government of Bohuslav Sobotka (CSSD) is yet to decide on the issue.
Mining beyond the limits in the CSA mine would mean pulling down 170 houses in the small town of Horni Jiretin.
At a protest meeting in Horni Jiretin yesterday, the town’s mayor Vladimir Burt (Greens) said the fight against the lifting of the limits has been going on for 20 years.
“It is very demanding both physically and psychologically. Many people (in Horni Jiretin) have the feeling that we are alone. But this campaign shows that we are not alone,” Burt told CTK.
Protests were also held in other towns in the north Bohemian coal-mining region – Chomutov, Litvinov, Most and Usti nad Labem.
The lifting of the limits has been supported by the trade unions and the representatives of the employers.
Senator Libor Michalek (for Greens) said during the Prague protest that only mining companies would profit from the lifting of the limits.
“The planned lifting does not correspond with the needs of the Czech Republic. Our country is among the biggest producers of electric power. There is no need to return to the policy before the year 1989 and devastate the environment,” Michalek said.
Greens chairwoman Jana Drapalova, who had a speech in Brno, said burning coal is ineffective and outdated.
“The future lies in modern technologies, support for renewable energy sources and insulation of buildings. It is easier to save energy than to liquidate long-term consequences of mining,” Drapalova said.
Litvinov Mayor Kamila Blahova (ANO) said the government has to be repeatedly told that those who would be directly concerned by the lifting of limits do not want it.
Litvinov wants the limits to be preserved, while the nearby Most would like brown coal to be mined beyond the limits.
Blahova said the protests would continue until the government decided on the issue.
kva/dr/rtj
