Maciej Rozmus is a miner at the Piast coal mine in Bieruń In Silesia, Poland, Europe’s largest coal-mining region, mine closures are looming. The European Green Deal aims to reduce CO2 emissions by 55 per cent by 2030 and ultimately achieve climate neutrality by 2050 the decarbonisation process must ensure the rights and livelihoods of the affected workers this transformation is raising both hopes and fears and while miners understand the need for change they also fear for their future and the future of their region leaving many miners wondering to what extent simply closing mines can solve the problem without a fundamental change in Poland’s energy model The Polish economy is heavily dependent on the metallurgical industry, 74 per cent of whose energy comes from coal (domestic and imported) while only 15 per cent comes from renewable energies. Under these conditions, meeting the EU’s 2030 targets will be no easy task. And while many in Poland understand that change is necessary – the country has 36 of Europe’s 50 most smog-ridden cities 12 of which are in Silesia – the question of how exactly to bring about this change has many scratching their heads A reading of history shows that the miners’ fears are well-founded: “Since 1989 no one has successfully restructured a mine,” Andrzej Chwiluk president of the Polish Miners’ Union (KWK) at the Makoszowy mine in Zabrze “The decision to close our mine was taken in one week they simply gave us a certificate of dismissal and that was it We had one of the most modern mine shafts and we even won an award for the safest mine,” he says When the Makoszowy mine was selected for closure in 2016 500 have remained to maintain and secure the shafts and administratively manage the land and employees “It can take up to seven years to close a mine not one new job has been created here,” says Chwiluk they’re offered jobs as cleaners or supervisors at a petrol station is overseeing petrol pumps in the outskirts of the city in the middle of nowhere and even has to work night shifts It’s not always possible to get there by public transport and most of them don’t have a car or a driving licence And it’s unlikely that their wages will be maintained It looks like the same story will be repeated in the mines that are closing now.” Although the request was sent at the end of February the status of the negotiations is still unknown One possible reason for the delay is the armed conflict in Ukraine which has seriously jeopardised the EU’s energy policy The year 2049 may prove to be too late a date for the European Union the agreement foresees two mechanisms that may jeopardise the granting of funds for the transformation – public allocations to the sector and investments for the construction and launch of what the pact defines as “clean coal facilities” which are used for the gasification of coal for synthesised natural gas “The agreement gives us a guarantee that no one will lose their job and that the closure will be progressive,” explains Jerzy Demski president of the Underground Workers’ Union at the Piast mine in Bieruń the government told us that Poland needs coal Now we know that we have almost 30 years to plan everything because time is running out and nothing has been done since the agreement was signed.” the Sośnica mine in Gliwice will stop mining coal in 2029 800 of whom will remain by 2029 to ensure the closure process “Some of the remaining 1,000 people will retire but for the rest it’s a problem,” explains Paweł Klucewicz president of the KONTRA Miners’ Union at the Sośnica mine “Now management is looking for excuses to fire people It happened with a miner who had an accident at work and was then dismissed at the end of his sick leave Management claimed that he had been absent for too long And those who are fired now will not receive severance pay Only those who leave after the closure in 2029 will receive it.” a member of the KONTRA union at the Sośnica mine Nothing new is opening here!” Wilk has been working underground for 13 years He shares a 46-square-metre flat with his wife who works in the processing plant at the same mine His accommodations are a far cry from the myth of the rich miner “The 120,000 zlotys [approximately €25,600 or US$26,800] in severance pay is enough for me to live on for a year I’m 44 years old and I’ve spent almost all my professional life in mining The special economic zone we have here [in Katowice] Companies in SEZ Katowice receive preferential conditions such as tax exemptions It was established in 1996 with the aim of supporting restructuring processes and generating new employment in the region the special economic zone has created 90,000 jobs The mining industry currently employs 80,000 people and one job in the mine generates four jobs in related sectors “There’s also no unions in the private sector “Most of these contracts are rubbish; they’re for a short period of time with no guarantees of extension we came up with ideas on how to use the mine’s land and infrastructure to create jobs a hydroelectric power station using mine water even bottling and selling fresh water from the mine All of these things would employ about a thousand people It just so happened that Greta Thunberg came to see us It was by talking to her and the NGOs that I finally got the feeling that someone was listening to us.” Participation in decision-making processes is one of the cornerstones of just transition but in Poland it is only just beginning to be discussed “All of the parties need to come to the table and develop a more holistic view of the whole process which puts workers and the local community at the centre This hasn’t been done so far but I want to believe that this time there’s more hope,” says Patryk Białas city councillor and member of the Mining Commission of the City of Katowice “The union would be happy to participate in the organisation of retraining courses Nobody has consulted us on the subject and I have yet to see a project that would truly increase workers’ qualifications,” says Marek Klucewicz president of the National Committee of the KONTRA Miners’ Union According to information provided by Sławomir Gruszka, spokesperson for the Office of the President of the Silesian voivodeship, the province has developed the Energy Project in cooperation with the Katowice special economic zone with the aim of improving workers’ skills and increasing employment including miners and workers from companies related to the mining industry who are at risk of redundancy enrolment for the programme has yet to begin “We need training and support to create jobs but I think we also need to consider modernisation and new technologies,” says Klucewicz “We need to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases while ensuring the country’s energy independence Equal Times is a trilingual news and opinion website focusing on labour politics and the economy from a social justice perspective Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time Warsaw: Archaeologists have discovered the wreck of a US-made bomber flown by the Soviet Red Army in World War II along with the remains of four crewmen killed when it crashed in southern Poland Only one man survived when the B-25 Mitchell was shot down by the German air force on January 19 a 23-year-old commander who parachuted out and was taken into German captivity Three men carry a sand-covered part of a World War II B-25 Mitchell bomber used by the Soviet air force when it was downed in 1945 by a German fighter near the town of Bierun Marta Wrobel in the town of Bierun during the war and told TVN that the blast from the crash had been powerful enough to blow out windows and doors The discovery of the wreckage comes as world leaders and a dwindling number of Holocaust survivors are set to gather at the site of the Nazi German death camp at Auschwitz on Monday to commemorate the 75th anniversary of its liberation The remains of the four Soviet crewmen who perished in the crash will be laid to rest at a nearby Red Army cemetery flown by US Army Air Corps crews on their way to attack enemy positions.Credit: Archive "The skeletons we've excavated so far are complete we found with them parts of the Soviet or American uniforms commonly used on Mitchell aircraft," said archaeologist Sebastian Witkowski The Soviet Union received hundreds of B-25 bombers under a lend-lease program under which the United States provided war supplies to its allies during the war \\\"The skeletons we've excavated so far are complete we found with them parts of the Soviet or American uniforms commonly used on Mitchell aircraft,\\\" said archaeologist Sebastian Witkowski