1. Introduction
The ongoing transformation of the energy sector in Poland [
1] and worldwide has a significant impact on the economic development of individual countries and leads to a number of social problems [
2,
3]. As is well known, the use of renewable energy sources and low-carbon technologies to produce clean energy has become a common aspiration [
2,
3]. The starting point for such energy policies is the assumption that it is possible to profoundly reduce greenhouse gas emissions while maintaining economic growth and even increasing economic activity and prosperity [
1,
4]. However, it is often overlooked that traditional energy sectors such as lignite mining have created a large number of jobs and that the cessation of fossil fuel extraction will have a negative impact on employment and thus on the overall economy of mining regions [
1,
5]. The analysis conducted by Wójcik-Jurkiewicz et al. [
1] clearly shows that about half of all Polish mining employees who left the mining sector did not find employment in other industries and remained unemployed. As one of the important reasons for this state of affairs, Wójcik-Jurkiewicz et al. [
1] cite the educational level of miners, which is significantly below the average of the labour market. This problem mainly affects regions where hard coal and lignite are mined. Many lignite mines are under increasing pressure due to initiatives to reduce CO
2 emissions [
6], the rapidly growing renewable energy capacity and the promotion of other alternative technologies [
7]. According to a 2018 EU study, Poland is the only country in the EU where coal and lignite mining accounts for more than 50% of total electricity generation [
8,
9]. However, although Poland’s lignite reserves are huge (over 23.5 billion tonnes) and the mining sector itself has significant potential, the future of Polish lignite mining does not look optimistic from a socio-economic perspective. This situation is of course related to the European Union’s climate and energy policies, as well as social and environmental problems [
9].
The future of the mining industry in Poland is the subject of constant negotiations between the government and the miners, who represent an important professional group in the country. Over the years, there have been various ideas from those in power to regulate this particular industry. One of the most recent such initiatives was the drafting of the so-called Coal SpecLaw in April 2019, which sought to introduce certain facilitations in obtaining concessions for the mining of lignite from deposits important to the national economy, i.e., those with an average thickness of more than seven metres [
10]. After numerous protests by environmentalists and the media [
11], and in connection with the end of the legislative period of the Polish Parliament, the project was withdrawn in the phase of legislative preparations.
It is also worth noting that in September 2020, the Polish government signed a memorandum on the transformation of the mining industry [
12]. According to this document, underground coal mining in Poland will only be allowed until 2049. This means that after this date, the mining of this most important energy resource for Poland will be completely stopped. One of the effects of such a declaration could be a renewed renaissance of lignite mining, which will gain importance as a strategic raw material for achieving energy self-sufficiency. In this context, it should be clearly emphasised that no other alternatives are currently in sight. Finally, the prospects for the construction of a nuclear power plant in Poland remain uncertain [
13], and natural gas supplies from the USA and Russia are not a source that offers sufficient reliability and continuity to maintain the stability of the Polish energy system. This has probably never been more evident than after 24 February 2022—with the outbreak of war in Ukraine, which led to the Polish government imposing a full embargo on Russian coal imports as early as mid-April 2022.
The geopolitical situation in the world and the need to reduce CO
2 emissions [
14] require a more conscious approach to the exploration of energy resources [
15] and the search for more environmentally friendly methods of mining and processing lignite. The aim of this study is to assess the possibility of continuing lignite opencast mining and its impact on rural development—both from an environmental and socio-economic point of view. More specifically, one of the research tasks is to analyse the balance of gains and losses in order to better understand whether opencast mining tends to have positive (e.g., social and economic) or negative (e.g., environmental) impacts in rural areas.
The article is structured as follows. In
Section 2 we go into the methods and materials we use in this article.
Section 3 reviews the literature related to the topic of the study. In
Section 4 we describe the characteristics of the spatial areas (two different municipalities) that are the subject of the analysis carried out in this article.
Section 5 is devoted to desk analysis (The Desk or Desk Research analysis consists of the research, evaluation and possible re-processing of information already collected from official sources.) and panel data analysis of two selected Polish municipalities where lignite is mined. In
Section 6, we provide a discussion, and
Section 7 presents conclusions from the conducted research.
2. Materials and Methods
As already mentioned in the introduction, one of the research tasks in this article is to take a closer look at the profit and loss balance of selected lignite mining municipalities. In this way, it will be possible to better understand whether lignite opencast mining in rural areas brings positive or negative impacts. The article assesses both socio-economic and environmental factors. Among the relevant indicators to be considered in assessing the effectiveness of continued lignite mining, the following should be considered: (1) social indicators (and costs)—the number of people displaced by resource extraction, the number of villages closed, the number of inhabitants in the municipality and their changes (out-migration, population growth); (2) economic indicators—municipal budget revenues, municipal investment expenditure, number of investments made in the municipality, degree to which the municipality is equipped with technical infrastructure, number of jobs in the municipality; (3) environmental indicators—degree of air pollution by particulate matter, sulphur oxides and nitrogen oxides related to lignite mining, extent of depression cone, degree of pollution of the soil surface; (4) spatial indicators—land use structure before, during and after mining of the raw material, the qualitative structure of the soil in the municipality.
More specifically, the study is based on the analysis of desk research (i.e., the analysis of data coming from the Central Statistical Office (CSO) and municipalities) and geographic information systems (GIS) that allow the integration and collective analysis of geospatial data from different sources, including satellite imagery (e.g., LandSat 9), GPS datasets and text attributes associated with a given space. In other words, GIS is a system that creates, manages, analyses and connects data to a map and integrates location data (in the case of this article, data about lignite opencast mines in two different municipalities in different voivodeships) with all kinds of descriptive information. As part of the GIS data types, the images we use are a powerful visual aid and serve as a source for derived information such as planimetry and classification schemes to derive information such as land use/land cover.
The study provides a detailed analysis and comparison of the overall situation in two different municipalities, i.e., Kleszczów (Łódź Voivodeship) and Kleczew (Wielkopolska Voivodeship), with special attention to the period before the start of lignite mining, after the start of mining, and the current state. More specifically, a review of the area designated for mining is carried out and the number of villages and people displaced by mining is determined. On this basis, trends in the characteristics of the two communities were examined, both in terms of continued land use for non-agricultural purposes and in terms of in-migration and out-migration of residents. Initially, population out-migration and a deterioration of the financial situation of the municipalities were expected. After a few years, there should be a gradual influx of new residents seeking work in the mines or in other businesses that are being established in the newly created settlements.
Historical satellite images and more recent orthophotos showing changes in land cover, as well as statistical data from the Central Statistical Office, were used for the analysis. The development strategies of the two municipalities and the environmental impact assessments prepared for the investments were also analysed. The next step of the study was to compile data on income and expenditure from the municipal budgets for each year of a mine operation, and then to assess and compare the gains with the losses associated with land degradation and the prevention of the use of land designated for mining and adjacent land for agricultural or forestry purposes (due to the negative impact of the subsidence cone) [
16]. The final phase of the research was to develop a vision for the future of these communities, and the planned methods of reclamation and use of the mine site after closure.
3. Literature Review
Lignite is one of the cheapest energy sources for electricity generation [
17,
18,
19,
20,
21]. More specifically, the cost of generating electricity from lignite is about 30% less than that of hard coal [
22], so it seems sensible to manage its resources optimally. There are 17 large lignite mines in the European Union [
8]. Germany (five mines) and Poland (three large mines) dominate both in terms of the number of mines and production volume. Poland ranks fifth in the world in terms of the amount of lignite resources mined [
9]. The largest lignite producer in Poland is KWB Bełchatów with an annual production of about 42.1 megatonnes [
23]. In terms of output, it is second only to the mines in the German region of Cologne, which produce about 60 megatonnes of lignite per year.
Figure 1 shows the locations of active lignite and hard coal mines in the EU and their annual production by NUTS-2 regions. It shows that Poland and Germany have a dominant share in coal production. Apart from Germany and Poland, other lignite mining areas in the EU are located in Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary and Slovakia. It is also worth noting that in most countries, opencast lignite mining is rarely carried out in parallel with underground hard coal mining [
24]. Poland is the only country in the European Union where such a combination of activities takes place [
22]. In the other EU countries, one of the two types of coal usually dominates.
As for the NUTS-2 regions (i.e., units corresponding to e.g., Polish voivodeships or German Laender in EU terminology) where lignite is mined, annual production varies from less than 2 megatonnes in smaller mining regions up to 60 megatonnes, as can be seen in
Figure 1. Again, it shows that the dominant regions are in Poland and Germany. Importantly, the start of opencast lignite mining in a given region is associated with the creation of many new jobs [
22,
25,
26], both those directly related to lignite mining and those indirectly related, such as processing [
22]. This is particularly evident in large lignite deposits with extensive extraction. For example, in the Łódź region, where KWB Bełchatów (and its opencast mines “Bełchatów” and “Szczerców”) is located, about 8900 people work in mining. If we add the employees of the subsidiaries that support the mining process and the employees of the power plant adjacent to the mine, the number of jobs increases to 12,500 [
27], and with the development of further opencast mines, this number could even increase. The mine is thus the most important workplace for the people in this region. Compared to other mining regions in Europe, the Łódź region is one of the largest in the European Union [
8]. As can be seen in
Table 1, similar numbers of jobs are also created in the main lignite mining regions in Romania, Bulgaria and Germany. At this point, reference should be made to the study by Kasztelewicz et al. [
22], who point to a number of factors why lignite is so strategically important for Poland, and especially for regions such as Łódź and Bełchatów. The advantages of this fossil fuel resource include relatively large and recognised reserves (In 2020, lignite reserves in Poland were estimated at around 5572 million tonnes, according to Statista), years of experience in the field, thanks to which Poland has very qualified technical, engineering and managerial staff, very good scientific and technical support in the form of research institutes and centres that work closely with the mining industry, excellent technical support aimed at the mining industry, and extensive cutting-edge technologies and machinery that are known worldwide.
One of the problems often cited as an argument against lignite mining is the emission of large amounts of air pollutants during combustion, which are harmful to the environment, health and microclimate [
8,
28,
29,
30,
31]. It is worth mentioning that the combustion of lignite naturally contributes to the emission of harmful pollutants, i.e., inhalable particles, with diameters that are generally 10 μm and smaller (PM
10), sulphur dioxide (SO
2), nitrogen oxides (NO
x), carbon monoxide (CO) [
30], as well as various dusts and heavy metals such as cadmium, lead, mercury [
31], in addition to carbon dioxide emissions. Depending on the source of origin, lignite can contain various toxic heavy metals [
31], and even radioactive substances that occur as by-products of combustion in the fly ashes. This further increases the health risks [
32]. Above all, it should be emphasised that lignite has the peculiarity that its combustion releases more carbon dioxide and sulphur compared to other types of coal while producing the same unit of heat (in other words, it is less energy-rich) [
33]. For this reason, lignite is considered by environmentalists to be the most harmful to human health [
34], although it should be noted here that scientists are working on technologies to reduce the negative effects of burning this fossil fuel [
30,
32]. The study by Nanaki et al. [
29] suggests that in order to significantly reduce GHG emissions, the technologies used would need to be replaced with more advanced ones that could help improve emissions (i.e., NO
x, SO
2, and PM
10 emissions) over the life cycle of lignite. However, looking at the problem more broadly, it is not the gas emissions that pose the greatest threat from a lignite life cycle perspective, but the category of respiratory impacts and associated diseases [
29]. To assess the harm from a health impact perspective, it is worth citing the study by Markandya and Wilkinson [
35], who compared the health burden of electricity generation from different sources, including hard coal and lignite. The study found that for lignite, the softest and most polluting form of coal, each TWh of electricity generated causes 32.6 deaths, 298 serious illnesses and 17,676 minor illnesses. For hard coal, the statistics are slightly more favourable, i.e., for every TWh of electricity generated from this resource, there are 24.5 deaths, 225 serious illnesses, including hospitalisations, congestive heart failure and chronic bronchitis, and 13,288 minor illnesses.
The map below (in
Figure 2), and the following lists (
Table 2 and
Table 3) show and compare the most important lignite deposits in Germany and Poland. From the analysis of the data and materials presented, it appears that in the case of Germany, complete data on the number of inhabitants and localities displaced are available, which cannot be said for Poland, for which most similar data are missing (taking into account all reports at both national and EU levels). Significantly, such data is also missing from local archives, as evidenced by information from mine workers and officials [
27,
36].
The scale of resettlement in Germany is much larger, but it should also be taken into account that the scale of ongoing lignite mining in Germany is much larger than in Poland and that the country has also introduced a corresponding law regulating these issues of resettlement related to lignite mining. In connection with
Table 2 and
Table 3, it should be noted that Germany has been struggling for years with a number of difficulties related to forced resettlement in the area of opencast lignite mines. This problem was clearly regulated in the German Mining Act; however, from a social point of view, this law—years later—is perceived very negatively [
37]. In this context, the situation in the GRD is the worst. Former inhabitants of mining communities were often forcibly resettled under much worse conditions than in other regions of the country. The situation was much better in North Rhine-Westphalia, for example, where residents (resettlers) were adequately compensated for the costs of relocation to other places. In Poland, on the other hand, at least several new opencast mines are planned [
37], but the plans are notoriously torpedoed in connection with EU climate policy. According to Kubiczek [
37], it is very difficult to get exact figures on the number of people displaced by Polish opencast mines. A rough estimate of the number due to the development of new opencast mines is around 26,800.
In many countries, there is currently a broad discussion about the future of mining and the utilisation of lignite deposits [
9,
22,
26,
32,
38,
39]. The deposits exploited so far and those where mining started 30–50 years ago are approaching exhaustion. An important element of our analysis is the presentation of both the negative and positive impacts of opencast lignite mining.
Table 4 summarises the negative impacts over the life cycle of lignite, mainly in terms of the environment, but also in a socio-economic context. As can be seen in this table, the negative impacts are primarily focused on environmental issues [
7,
40,
41].
On the other hand, besides the negative effects, opencast mining also brings a number of positive effects. As can be seen in
Table 5, most of them are mainly related to the socio-economic situation of the local communities, which are in some way connected to the life cycle of lignite.
The reasonableness of the above arguments can be confirmed by analysing the list of the richest municipalities in Poland (
Table 6, based on the data of the Central Statistical Office for 2019). Among the 2477 municipalities, the municipality of Kleszczów (which we discuss in more detail in
Section 5.1) takes the first place. The largest lignite mine in Poland and one of the largest in the world, KWB Bełchatów, operates in this municipality. In turn, the municipality of Rząśnia, which ranks fifth, is home to the “Szczerców” mine. A high 113th place is occupied by the commune of Kleczew (to which we devote more space in
Section 5.2), where the mines of KWB Konin are located. For comparison, it should be noted that the other highly ranked municipalities are usually important tourist destinations such as Świeradów-Zdrój, Rewa, Krynica Morska, Karpacz or municipalities with large industrial or service centres.
In addition to the background information and theoretical context, we have included
Table A1 in
Appendix A, which in a way summarises the main studies that deal with opencast lignite mining and its socio-economic and environmental significance (focusing on both negative and positive impacts). Our aim is to briefly characterise these works and show their contribution to the understanding of the problems analysed, thus further expanding the literature in this field.
In order to investigate and assess the actual impact of opencast mining on rural development in specific municipalities, two examples were selected for further analysis: the municipality of Kleszczów (in Łódzkie Voivodeship) and the municipality of Kleczew (in Wielkopolskie Voivodeship).
Section 5 analyses the occurrence of negative and positive impacts of mining activities in these municipalities and provides an overall assessment to show whether these municipalities have gained or lost from lignite mining.
6. Discussion
The rationale for this study is partly justified by the existence of similar studies conducted for other large lignite-producing countries, including Germany [
45,
48,
71] and Greece [
7]. As for the novelty of our study, LandSat 9 satellite data (or more precisely GIS remote sensing data) from different periods are its important element. One cannot say that there is a complete lack of remote sensing studies on lignite mining areas in Poland, but there are certainly not many. We have not found a comparable study that takes into account the Polish context of lignite mining and, for example, uses NDVI data from two very distant time periods (i.e., the present and the 1980s) and draws conclusions from them. Our study shows the extent of environmental changes in the Polish context as far as lignite mining is concerned. This type of research, based on the use of remote sensing data, is becoming increasingly popular. It allows the processing and analysing of satellite images (orthophoto maps), and drawing conclusions from different fields of knowledge, e.g., climate change and water-related issues as in the study by Sobieraj et al. [
72], where digital elevation/terrain and slope maps were used and some conclusions were drawn on this basis [
72]. We believe that this type of study will become more popular due to the development of remote sensing technology and the increasing amount of available data and tools for data processing and analysis. In this context, Zawadzki et al. [
73] point out that post-mining landscapes are usually very large and their land cover is not easy to assess due, among other things, to the particular spatial variability associated with different environmental factors. Therefore, the application of an appropriate survey method to assess such areas is all the more important. The method on which such a study should be based should not only allow a reliable assessment (without excessive errors) based on available data for relatively large areas but should also be cost-effective and offer the possibility of obtaining reliable results relatively quickly [
73,
74,
75]. Modern remote sensing and geostatistical methods help in conducting such studies [
75]. One such method is the use of orthophoto maps, which are produced based on various remote sensing sensors, have an adequate spatial, radiometric and temporal resolution, and cover large areas [
73]. Such satellite orthophotos can provide a variety of data, e.g., geophysical, ecological, geochemical or even biological or social in nature, which can form a solid basis for validation of the collected satellite data and for scientific conclusions based on geostatistics [
75] and a variety of very sophisticated tools such as the Google Earth Engine [
76,
77]. An example of the use of remote sensing data can be the calculation of selected indices of land surface temperature or vegetation production [
78,
79]. D’Emilio [
75] and Zawadzki et al. [
73] point out the possibility of combining numerous ground-based measurements with satellite information originating from Sentinel, Landsat or other satellites to use these data in an integrated way.
Przeździecki et al. [
74] investigated the state of grassland moisture in the area of an extensive neighbourhood of an open-cast lignite mine using the Thermo Vegetation Drought Index (TVDI). For this purpose, the authors exclusively used a remote sensing method based on Landsat imagery; they estimated the spatial variability of the TVDI using a semivariance analysis. They thus proved that remote sensing and the TVDI analysis based on it can serve as an effective indicator of the moisture status of grassland in the vicinity of opencast mining. Zawadzki et al. [
80], on the other hand, used remote sensing (more precisely, data from TM and ETM+ sensors of the Landsat 5 and Landsat 7 satellites) and geostatistics to determine the area of influence of a subsidence cone near one of the largest opencast mines in Bełchatów. Moreover, the remote sensing-based estimation of the area of the subsidence cone provided similar results as the ground-based data. However, it is worth mentioning that the application of a remote sensing-based method to a very large area (40 km) provided significant savings, as remote sensing is much cheaper compared to ground-based methods.
Our remote sensing study of the NDVI index in the lignite mining area of the Kleszczów municipality, based on Landsat data, should also be seen in this context (i.e., savings in carrying out the analysis) (see
Figure 10).
Figure 10, indeed shows that the NDVI in the rehabilitated area of the former landfill reaches high positive values after reclamation, which clearly shows that the area has been afforested and the indicators have improved. Of course, the extent of the quarry itself has increased—and here the NDVI reaches negative values, but in view of the reclamation and future development, the NDVI in this area can be expected to increase significantly. This study should be seen as an additional extension of the empirical findings in the field of the GIS-remote sensing analysis (LandSat data) in connection with environmental changes in lignite mining areas after mining.
As for the cost-benefit ratio in the life cycle of lignite (for the mining municipalities studied), the study considered both socio-economic and environmental factors. Specifically, the study is based on desk research, i.e., the analysis of data from the Central Statistical Office (CSO) and the municipalities of Kleszczów and Kleczew, as well as on geographic information systems (GIS), which enable the integration and joint analysis of geodata from different sources, including satellite imagery (i.e., Landsat data). In other words, GIS enables the analysis of data derived from maps from different time periods, and the integration of location data (in the case of this article, data on open pit mines in two different municipalities in different voivodeships) with all kinds of descriptive information. Within the data types of GIS, the images we use are a powerful visual aid and serve as a source of information, e.g., for classification schemes showing land use/land cover. Desk research analysis involves the examination, evaluation and processing of information already collected from official sources. We refer in particular, to data from local branches of the Central Statistical Office, various reports [
81,
82], data from municipalities, including municipal spatial planning studies, and data obtained through private communication with mine and community representatives [
36,
56].
As for the statistical and econometric analysis conducted in
Section 5.3, it shows that an improvement in economic indicators related to budget revenues and investment expenditure of lignite mining municipalities has a positive impact on the number of inhabitants living in these municipalities. Although it was not possible to prove causality for the relevant variables, an examination of the panel regression analysis shows that about 50% of the variation in the number of inhabitants variable can be explained by the variation in the lignite mining municipalities’ budget revenues and investment expenditure variables. Furthermore, the estimated beta coefficients were found to be positive and statistically significant. It can therefore be concluded that the finances (better economic conditions) of lignite mining municipalities (most of which come from lignite mining) promote the growth of the population in these regions. The overall dimension of the study suggests that the positive aspects of mining predominate in both municipalities studied. In the case of the Kleszczów municipality, the land designated for mining was mostly low-grade farmland. Although the number of inhabitants in the municipality decreased after mining started, this trend reversed after a few years. The municipality’s income and thus its investment expenditure began to increase significantly. This once poor rural municipality is now the richest municipality in Poland and its current level of development is in many ways comparable to that of cities. Moreover, the carefully planned reclamation and future use of the mining areas aims to strengthen both the tourism and economic potential of the region [
83]. With the introduction of more restrictive environmental policies that limit the emission of air pollutants and reduce the extent of the groundwater drawdown cone, lignite mining in the municipality of Kleszczów is no longer seen as a problem, but as a source of income, and the municipality itself as an attractive place to live that sets standards for the development of other regions.
Similar trends as in Kleszczów can also be observed in Kleczew. Although the extent of mining in the municipality of Kleczew is much smaller compared to Kleszczów, the same positive and negative aspects of lignite mining can be observed when looking at the ratio of the mining area to the total administrative area. In both municipalities, there is a systematic increase in population and municipal budget revenue, and consequently an increase in investment expenditure. Although the municipality of Kleczew has largely maintained its agricultural character, the income from mining has enabled numerous investment projects to be carried out. Furthermore, the extent of current environmental problems is relatively low, due to the implementation of the Low Emission Management Plan, the limitation of the extent of the subsidence cone (so that farmland is actually adjacent to the mine site, as previously shown in
Figure 13) and the implementation of ongoing reclamation measures after the mining of part of the deposit.
Opencast lignite mining thus has both negative and positive impacts on the municipalities, which are briefly summarised in
Table 12. This applies not only to lignite mining but also to rock or sulphur opencast mining. However, the analysed examples of two municipalities show that it is possible to ensure energy stability for the whole country and rural development if the negative impacts of lignite mining are adequately mitigated and mine sites are properly rehabilitated after closure.
7. Conclusions
The study examines the changes taking place in rural mining areas as a result of open-cast lignite mining in Poland. More specifically, the aim of the study was to assess the possibility of continuing opencast mining and its impact on rural development—both from an environmental and socio-economic point of view. To establish this, we have combined different research methods based on case study analyses (for two important lignite mining centres in Poland), a number of different stylised facts, GIS remote sensing analyses (e.g., NDVI for part of the Kleszczów municipal area) and econometric analyses for selected socio-economic data (based on correlation tests, panel regressions and Granger causality tests). The study took particular account of the suitability of the excluded areas for agricultural production. Our results show that in some cases mining promotes community development and furthermore leads to new agricultural and tourism potential after recultivation. Thanks to mining, rural municipalities are changing their character and combining agricultural, industrial and other economic activities.
It is worth noting that the decision for or against lignite mining development and the assessment of its feasibility is of course strongly influenced by the nature of the municipality, the land use pattern and other social, economic and environmental aspects. Effective decision-making may require appropriate multi-criteria analyses of spatial data using the GIS software that takes into account all aspects of sustainable development. These analyses should also consider the social aspects related to resettlement.
Furthermore, hasty top-down decisions based on the assumption that mining is always and exclusively a harmful activity should be avoided at all costs. The low cost of energy production from lignite makes it the only energy source that can ensure Poland’s self-sufficiency in energy [
17]. In addition to providing the needed energy or rock material, opencast lignite mining has proven to be a development opportunity for the municipalities where the opencast mines are located. If mining is cost-effective and the ratio of overburden to deposit thickness does not exceed 12:1 [
57,
84], then mining is an option worth considering. In any case, mining should be carried out in an environmentally sound manner and should not damage protected unique ecosystems. The positive impacts of mining at some sites may outweigh the negative impacts. Ultimately, important decisions about starting or stopping mining activities in a region should always be made taking into account the views and situations of both the local population and the people working in the mines. Any decision taken by the government without consulting the miners may lead to increased tensions and protests, as has been the case all too often in Poland in recent years. Ensuring decent living conditions for the people who are to be relocated, and maintaining jobs for those who have migrated to work in the mines is a priority that cannot be ignored. Therefore, the negotiations between the government and the miners, as well as the special coal law mentioned in the introduction section, must be evaluated in light of the conclusions formulated above. If a lignite deposit can be considered important for the national economy and its mining is carried out in accordance with the principle of sustainable development and with consideration for the environment, such mining may not only be harmless but even beneficial for the development of the region.
Prospects for further research could include analysing opportunities for post-mining landscape development in places where exploitation has ceased, and monitoring directions for effective reclamation and development that are consistent with municipal and regional spatial planning policies. Guidelines established in this way can help local authorities consciously shape space by enabling the use of existing resources within their municipal areas and then giving them a new character based on mined resources and concern for the environment. In addition, it is advisable to explore the use of lignite outside the energy sector in various other areas as part of the inevitable energy transition. One of these areas is undoubtedly agriculture in the broadest sense. The lignite found in Poland is very similar to soil humus in its physical and chemical properties, with a high content of humic acids and functional oxygen groups. Therefore, most lignite deposits on the Polish territory have proved useful for agriculture and environmental protection, and fertilisers and recultivation mixtures have been developed on their basis. Further research should be directed towards the use of lignite fertilisers, including in the recultivation of industrially contaminated and degraded soils.
Finally, the practical value of the study is that it shows how rational exploitation of fossil fuels through opencast mining, using lignite as an example, complemented by properly implemented reclamation and rational land use, can contribute both to the energy security of the country as a whole and to the spatial development of local mining communities. Based on these conclusions, local authorities can make a conscious assessment of the resources available in their community area and the opportunities for their extraction. They can also gain valuable insights into what developmental changes they can expect in the long term in connection with such mining activities.