Liberec Region in Czechia to monitor mining-related movement in 18 buildings

The Liberec Region will monitor movement in buildings caused by mining at the Turów lignite mine in Poland, near the Czech border. Remote-monitoring sensors, in a project expected to last at least ten years, will initially be installed in 18 buildings in Hrádek nad Nisou and Heřmanice: five are public buildings and the rest are privately owned. The contract includes an option to install tilt sensors at a further ten sites. The region will pay CZK 1.9 million for the measuring equipment and monitoring over ten years, Deputy Governor Jiří Klápště (Spolu) told journalists today.

The project is intended to show how mining affects the structural integrity of buildings. Two tilt sensors will be installed in each building, ideally in opposite corners, to monitor whether it is tilting. The Czech Geological Society and DIAMO are also carrying out measurements, and it will be possible to combine these with data from the tilt sensors. The contract was awarded to a consortium of Prague-based companies INSET and GeoTec-CS. “In addition to procuring and installing the tilt sensors, the project includes regular servicing, an annual assessment of the measurement results and photographic documentation of the buildings before the sensors are installed,” Klápště added.

The Turów mine, near the Czech-Polish border, supplies coal mainly to the neighbouring power plant. PGE, which owns both the mine and the power plant, plans to continue mining there until 2044. The mine is set to expand to 30 square kilometres along the road from Zittau to Bogatynia. Residents on the Czech side of the border fear the loss of groundwater, increased dust, noise and ground subsidence. The Polish side has already built an underground barrier intended to prevent water from flowing away, while an earth berm protects people on the Czech side from dust and noise from the mine.

The Liberec Region will fund building monitoring from the Turów Fund, established under a Czech-Polish agreement on addressing the impacts of mining. In February 2022, Poland and PGE paid the Czech Republic 45 million euros (roughly CZK 1.14 billion) in compensation for damages. Of that, 35 million euros (CZK 887 million) went into the Turów Fund’s transparent account, managed by the Liberec Region. The region has already used it to support several projects to secure drinking water for residents near the border. The account currently holds around CZK 750 million, including interest.