Bialowieza National Park is not obeying regulations of Polish Nature Conservation Act
Joanna Chanilo,
"Kurier Poranny", November 08, 2005
*(The article is about the Polish part of the Bialowieza Forest, note by the website editor)
The advertisement out of law
According to rules of Polish Nature Protection Act “in national parks and nature reserves it is forbidden to place boards, inscriptions and advertisements not connected with nature protection, access to national park or nature reserve, environmental education with exception of road signs and other signs used for general security and public order. Whereas, in the course of launching narrow gauge railway connection Old Bialowieza – Capercaillie Range, on the station building were placed two big advertisements of Brewing Company. It is very shocking, that regulations of Nature Conservation Act – the highest rank of law after the Polish Constitution – are broken by institution funded for its enforcement. And it happened in the most valuable forest of Europe.
Director of BNP, Jozef Popiel asked, why the advertisement was placed there, answered: - It is our business! This is agreement between the Park and sponsor. For everyone who will see it there it should be clear, why it’s there – it should serve as support of European bison breeding. Our sponsor is doing it for years.
As answer for questioning about conflict between this action and Nature Conservation Act director Popiel shouts one sentence: We had right to do it!
But again the law says something contrary: “who intentionally is offending regulations to be in force in: national parks, nature reserves, landscape parks, areas of protected landscape, Natura 2000 sites is liable to arrest or fine”.
Money are not everything
Breaking of legal regulations is here very obvious and anybody would doubt that responsible person should be consequently punished. But there is much more, it is very dangerous precedence – it is capture of protected area for commerce – and it must be stressed here. Especially, that it took place on the basis of Park’s administration decision. Questions are arising here about management of the Bialowieza Primeval Forest – heritage of not just a nation but the whole World. What are the mechanisms behind the fact, that institution funded for effective protection of the forest is selling the most precious assets? Isn’t it the warning sign, that we are on the edge, behind which there is no sacrum and the only god are money?
Very often persons responsible for such actions are explaining that income will be spent for the nature protection. This argument is used also in the case of narrow gauge railroad launching. But there is a question, how far construction of the next infrastructures in protected areas will lead to the situation ….. when there will be nothing more to conserve? Bialowieza Primeval Forest is valued for its wilderness – not for domestication. National Park was funded to protect this wilderness and to pass it for the next generations – the money rush should not change its aim.