Via Baltica and Via Carpatia expressways, Poland

In 2009, as a result of a change of government and as an outcome of the Rospuda Valley battle, on October 20 the Polish Council of Ministers decided on a new routing for the Via Baltica and S-19 expressway in north-east Poland.

In recent years, however, the idea to develop another transport corridor along the S-19 expressway, called Via Carpatia, has gained the support of the authorities although it too may cause negative impacts on a variety of environmentally valuable sites.

The way forward

The Polish Council of Ministers’ decision in 2009 on a new routing for the Via Baltica and S-19 expressway in north-east Poland was welcomed by NGOs and other environmental groups as major progress in the conservation of Poland’s unique nature and represents a significant step in the right direction towards the proper implementation of Polish and European environmental legislation. The new route duly follows the recommendations made by experts and the findings of the SEA finished in 2008.

NGOs will continue the monitoring of road developments in north-east Poland in order to:

• Ensure that all environmentally harmful road projects along the old routing of the Via Baltica (including the planned Katrynka-Przewalanka upgrade through Knyszyn Forest and the Sztabin Bypass through the Biebrza Marshes) are halted or modified. With the new route for the Via Baltica corridor settled, there is no need to continue with these large scale projects on the old route which will needlessly damage Natura 2000 sites.
• Ensure implementation of the new route decision by the Board of Ministers.

The Via Carpatia (S-19 expressroad) as now proposed will bypass Knyszyn Forest from the north and west sides (which is good), but further south from Bialystok it may affect approximately 15 Natura 2000 sites.

The Via Carpatia would cross important migratory corridors for species such as wolf, lynx and bear. The decision-making process for the Via Carpatia is not being carried out according to any SEA. The road project itself has been divided into several sections, where separate environmental impact assessments (EIAs) are conducted. This kind of approach makes it impossible to find environmentally reasonable variants for the entire road.

The project has already received political support from the Polish government, which intends to add this road to the TEN-T network (as part of the TEN-T revision in 2010) and make it an international corridor qualifying for more easily available EU funding. Parts of the expressway have already been proposed to be co-funded by EU funds within the Operational Programme “Infrastructure and Environment” as TEN-T projects.

NGOs are of the view that as the amended Decree on the network of national roads and expressways altered, the route of the S-19 expressroad, an additional SEA should now be carried out to inform the overall routing decision for this corridor. The development of the Via Carpatia continues to be carefully monitored.

Notes

1. The Natura 2000 sites tat are potentially endangered by the Via Baltica include the following: Upper Narew river Valley, Bug Valley, Lasy Janowskie, Lower San Valley, Middle Wislok river with tributaries, Zdziary, Uroczyska Puszczy Sandomierskiej, Polichna, Trzciana, Jasiolka, Schrony Brzeskiego Rejonu Umocnionego, Murwy kserotermiczne w Hackach, Dolny San i Wislok, and Ostoja Czarnorzecka.