Availability of Rock Raw Materials in the Context of Legally Protected Areas of the Dolnoslaskie Voivodeship

This publication analyses the possibilities of mining for rock raw materials from documented and unexploited rock raw material deposits within the legally protected areas of a voivodenship (Polish province). The research shows that within the legally protected areas of the selected voivodeship, there were 39 such deposits with total resources of 985.2 millionMg. These deposits are located within the following areas: Natural Landscape Parks, Landscape Protection Areas, Natura 2000 areas, underneath the retention reservoir S³up (1 gravel and sand deposit), as well as within the areas of two Natural Landscape Parks planned to be designed. Analysis of the deposits shows that environmental considerations do not exclude prospective mineral resources extraction; however, they limited such extraction to a great extent. Raw material deposits could only be exploited pursuant to the Polish Act of 9 June 2011 Geological and Mining Law, that is, after obtaining a concession for mining activities within a particular area. One of the attachments to the concession application form is the prior decision on environmental conditionings for undertaking execution pursuant to Article 72 of the Act on Access to Information on the Environment. The crucial part of obtaining the approval for the undertaking is conducting the so-called impact evaluation procedure. This procedure is aimed at preventing an unfavourable influence on the environment from the planned undertaking. Additionally, in the case of legally protected areas, the possibilities of mining are conditioned by the Polish Environmental Protection Act, and in the case of Natural Landscape Parks by the legal act establishing a certain Landscape Park. In the legal acts establishing 3 particular Landscape Parks (Bóbr Valley Landscape Park, Rudawy Landscape Park, and Che³my Landscape Park) there are total bans on executing undertakings that could considerably influence the environment, as well as on obtaining rocks, fossils, and minerals for economic purposes. That means that 8 deposits located within the areas of these Parks could not be exploited. The only exception here is the deposit of amphibolite “Wieoeciszowice”, due to the provisions of the act establishing the Rudawy Landscape Park concerning the possibility of mining for minerals if the conducted evaluation procedure shows a lack of unfavourable influence on the nature of the Park. In the case of Landscape Protection Areas and Natura 2000 areas, mining of the documented deposits is possible under the condition that the conducted impact evaluation procedure shows a lack of considerable negative influence of the investment on the nature of the protected area, and on the protection objectives of the Natura 2000 area. The analysis has also shown that sand and gravel exploitation is impossible from underneath the S³up retention reservoir. This is caused by the established water intake protection zone that includes the reservoir basin and its hydraulic structures, and which completely eliminates the possibilities of mining for minerals in that area.