Coal miner protests rallies in Silesia
Protesting against decarbonisation policies
Polish miners of the Jastrzebska Coal Company (JSW) during the protest in front of the company headquarters in Jastrzębie-Zdrój, Poland, 09 February 2015. ©EPA/ANDRZEJ GRYGIEL
On many occasions, and especially in 2015, Silesian miners, led by mining trade unions, protested against layoffs, planned closure of hard coal mines, planned reduction in coal extraction, and import of coal from Russia. Actions lasted a few days on average and included protest rallies in Silesian towns, and blockades of rails or roads to impede coal imports. These actions took place concurrently with coal miner strikes. Protests have decreased in number following the election of the Law and Justice-led government at the end of 2015.
Further reading
TEMPER, Leah, et al. Movements shaping climate futures: A systematic mapping of protests against fossil fuel and low-carbon energy projects. Environmental Research Letters, 2020, 15. Jg., Nr. 12, S. 123004. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abc197
SOVACOOL, Benjamin K., et al. Conflicted transitions: Exploring the actors, tactics, and outcomes of social opposition against energy infrastructure. Global environmental change, 2022, 73. Jg., S. 102473. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2022.102473
Funding
The CINTRAN project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 884539. The sole responsibility for the content of this website lies with the authors and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of CINEA or other EU agencies or bodies.