The Germans are shedding crocodile tears over President Karol Nawrocki’s veto concerning the creation of the Lower Oder Valley National Park (PNDDO). Our western “friends” officially lament that the veto will harm the natural value of the area and threaten the ecosystem, but in reality they are upset because Nawrocki has torpedoed a key element of their plan to turn our country into an economic open-air museum. After all, inland navigation (and not only that), so heavily disparaged by Germany as allegedly “threatening” the environment, poses a danger only east of the Oder – west of the border it develops without obstacles.
German reactions: “This is disappointing”
German propaganda has mobilized “completely apolitical” local officials and equally “apolitical” environmental activists. Whether this new form of Wunderwaffe brings Germany success in “circumventing” Nawrocki’s veto, or ends like the Ardennes offensive, remains to be seen. Across the Oder, they are counting on the support of Tusk’s minister, Hennig-Kloska. So far, the Germans are only spinning sentimental tales about nature “endangered” – supposedly as a result of the Polish president’s actions.
In an interview with Deutsche Welle, German environmental activists complain that the Polish president’s decision surprised them with the scale of political opposition:
“It is clear that here and there the disappointment is great,” said Lukas Piskorz, spokesperson for the EuroNatur Foundation.
He stressed that after months of intensive work on cooperation concerning protection of the Oder, the German side expected a “constructive resolution of the dispute”, which in practice would have meant adopting Berlin’s point of view. As Piskorz noted, “it is difficult to understand that this area remains without protected status.” His disappointment is also shared by the mayor of municipalities along the Oder, quoted by DW. He argues that cooperation between the two countries should look different:
“It would make much more sense if the Polish side implemented a form of protection,” said Mayor Dria Traczyk in an interview with DW.
From the German perspective, the national park was supposed to form the foundation for developing a “cross-border area” project which – as DW claims – enjoyed support from local communities and experts on both sides of the border. Critics of establishing the National Park justify their opposition mainly with concerns about stalling the region’s economic development, risks for investments and residents’ activities, as well as insufficient public consultations. This was also highlighted by the Chancellery of the President (KP) in its justification of the veto, arguing that data on the natural value of the area are “unverified”, and that creating the park could cause financial losses for local municipalities.
Dirk Treichel, director of the Lower Oder Valley National Park on the German side, likewise does not hide his disappointment with the Polish president’s decision.
“We are very disappointed. I would have been extremely happy if the national park on the Polish side had been created – as planned – on November 11,” said Treichel. “Already in 1990, the concept of establishing a national park within the Lower Oder was a Polish-German project. It was planned to create one transboundary park on both sides of the river, with Polish-German administration. Even if, over time, it became clear that this could not be implemented for legal reasons, establishing the national park now on the Polish side would have been enormous progress. For us, in the jubilee year marking the 30th anniversary of our park, it would have been the greatest gift,” the German official said emotionally.
Treichel has not lost hope that in the future a Lower Oder Valley National Park will be established on the Polish side. For now, the Germans pin all their hopes on Paulina Hennig-Kloska, who announced on Monday (17 November) in Szczecin that the presidential veto will not stop actions aimed at “protecting these areas”. As a plan B, she presented a proposal for Szczecin and Kołbaskowo to establish a protected area in the Międzyodrze, which would then be incorporated into the Wolin National Park (WPN).