No Denying It

“The Baltic Sea receives more phosphorus from gypsum slag heaps in Gdańsk than from all the cities in Finland,” writes Finnish daily newspaper Helsingin Sanomat. It quotes scientists, who accuse Poland of polluting the Baltic Sea. According to the newspaper, 220 tons of phosphorus per year pollute the Baltic Sea in the vicinity of the Gdańsk Phosphate Fertilizer Plant (Gdańskie Zakłady Nawozów Fosforowych), and this excessive amount could cause an ecological disaster. Finnish experts have taken water samples near the plant area. In the opinion of Dr Marko Reinikainen, such a high level of phosphorus contamination is dangerous not only to Polish waters, but also to the entire sea. As Helsingin Sanomat reports, the Polish government has informed the international Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission (HELCOM) that the plant in Gdańsk does not pose any ecological threat. However, the Finnish scientist claims that the plant should be inspected by European Union authorities and equipped with video surveillance systems. Meanwhile, another expert, Seppo Knuuttila from the Finnish Environment Institute maintains that reports submitted to HELCOM do not always correspond with the facts. “That is why we need to control the activities of the phosphate fertilizer industry in all the countries of the Baltic region,” says Knuuttila.
Wp.pl

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End for Vodka?

The value of the Polish ‘coloured’ alcohol market is estimated to be PLN 5 billion, which constitutes 30% of the whole spirits market. At the moment, flavoured vodka rules in Poland and the sale of whiskey is rapidly growing. According to Leszek Wiwały, president of the Polish Spirits Industry (Polski Przemysł Spirytusowy), the whiskey market in Poland was valued at PLN 1.4 billion last year. Brandy, gin and rum are also becoming popular however whiskey remains the leader in this category. Last year the Scottish whiskey market grew by more than 20%. The reason for such growing interest is down to the changing tastes and habits of Polish customers and there is therefore great potential for future growth here. When it comes to whiskey, the most popular types are the mid-priced whiskies, single malts and American brands. For example, Ballantine’s has become one of Poland’s favourite brands recently. “Despite the difficult economic situation, last year was actually very good and successful for the alcohol market. Additionally, some segments, like the whiskey market, experienced spectacular growth. However, there is no doubt that customers will look to save in these times of crisis and this may affect the sale of alcohol,” Wiwała adds. Top-shelf, luxury products, even though they still constitute a small part of the spirits market in Poland, are an extremely promising segment. Polish customers are travelling more than ever before and are currently more willing to buy new brands, which they later look for on returning to Poland. As a result, Polish people have become more open to new types of imported spirits.
Interia.pl

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Sad Face of Migration

Poles do not want to live in cities any longer and people are making their escape. The newest report on the makeup of Poland’s population in 2012 by the Central Statistical Office (GUS) has just been released. Poland’s current population is 38.5 million and about 15.2 million live in the countryside, while around 23.3 million live in cities. Last year, 244,000 people moved to the countryside, which is 35,300 more than people who moved in the opposite direction. This data does not only apply to Warsaw as, according to official data, 6,368 people moved to the capital last year. Cities, however, have nothing to worry about with regards to depopulation as the majority of citizens who decided to abandon crowded urban areas are actually moving to suburbia and other areas around cities. Polish people are migrating mainly due to economic reasons. The high level of unemployment (13.4% at the end of 2012) is even higher in the eastern regions of Poland (for example, 21.2% in Warmia and Mazury). People are therefore looking for job opportunities in other parts of the country. However, many Poles continue to move abroad with Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Ireland and the Netherlands being the most popular destinations. The vast majority of Poles leave in search of a better salary, although some claim that that it is for family reasons, while others wish to study abroad. In 2012, the population of Poland fell by approximately 5,000 people when compared with the previous year. This means that 1 in every 100,000 citizens has left the country. However, it is thanks to migration abroad that Poland has not been so badly hit by the global economic crisis. In the years 2004-2010, Polish emigrants sent more than EUR 30 billion back to Poland. Interestingly, over exactly the same period, Poland received EUR 16.5 billion in EU subsidies.
Wp.pl

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Glass Half Full?

Despite the crisis, the level of happiness in Poland remains high. It sounds strange but an incredible 37% of Poles declare that they feel fulfilled, content and happy. Since 1988, when a similar study was conducted for the first time, the level of Polish optimism has not been higher. Poles are in high spirits as opposed to everyone and everything around them. Unemployment may exceed 15% by the end of 2013 and will be at its highest level for years. There is no chance of any increase in salaries. What is more, most are seeing their wages slashed. The only rises which Polish people can expect are in the shops and stores as prices are continually on the increase. The state budget is in such a poor condition that the government is trying to find money in the pockets of the average Jan Kowalski. Tax offices are overzealously checking not only large companies, but also ordinary people. Problems with health services are not out of the ordinary. Therefore, on paper the average Kowalski should be depressed. However, the opposite is true. “Complaining is no longer trendy. Being happy is. The whole world is OK now and Poles want to be a part of this,” said Jacek Santorski, a business psychologist. The market research institution CBOS found that almost two-fifths of Poles (the aforementioned 37%) claim to be happy and feel fulfilled in their lives. There are three times fewer people who state that their life is tainted with bad luck (12%). Compared with 1988, the number of people who consider themselves happy has doubled. The reasons for this happiness seem to be quite trivial. There is almost universal (92%) satisfaction with children, while the vast majority of spouses (82%) are happy with their relationships. The majority of people who feel positive about their marriage are people between the ages of 25 and 34. For 77% of Poles, the source of the most satisfaction in life are relationships with friends and colleagues. Almost eight out of ten respondents (78%) are satisfied with where they live, and would not like to move. 59% of Poles are happy with their health, despite popular opinion.
Interia.pl

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Life is Not Easy

Cyclists do not have it easy in the capital of Poland. Even though cycle lanes in Warsaw make up a total of 340km, many of them end abruptly and there are no connections between different routes. The city wants to change this. In 2012 a representative for cyclists, Łukasz Puchalski, was appointed. His goal is to make life easier for cyclists in the capital. “A bike lane will be opened on Jagiellońska Street soon, special lanes will be painted on Książeca, Spacerowa, Saska and Wojska Polskiego streets,” says Puchalski. He adds that there are plans to build connections between existing routes (this includes the bridges: Most Północny and Most Gdański). There are intensive works on the Vistula Cycle Route (Nadwiślański Szlak Rowerowy) nevertheless he is sorry to inform fellow cyclists that it will not be finished this year. When asked about when the city plans to connect all existing cycle lanes and routes, he replies: “We are currently working on this project. Thanks to EU funds, this should be possible by 2020”. The lack of cycle lanes is not the only worry for Warsaw cyclists. There currently seems to be a wave of antipathy towards cyclists on the streets of Warsaw. The police regularly fine cyclists who ride their bikes on pedestrian crossings. How many cyclists have been fined so far? “We do not have such statistics,” says Mariusz Mrozek, spokesman for Warsaw Police. The Municipal Police, however, have fined 182 cyclists for a total of of PLN 18,900; they have cautioned 176 cyclists and have stopped 26 drunk cyclists. All of this has taken place in only the past five months. Police records state that in April and May of this year cyclists caused 11 road accidents and 44 collisions, in which a total of 12 people were injured.
Życie Warszawy

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Deathly Thin

A girl from Warsaw purchased the lethal substance dinitrophenol (DNP) on the internet and has died as a result of ingesting it. She wanted to lose weight and died after a few days of taking DNP. Professor Zbigniew Fijałek, director of National Medicines Institute (NIL), explained that the intense fat burning induced by DNP results in the production of so much heat that the body begins to boil. The girl’s parents said that several days before her death, their daughter could not breath normally and was sweating excessively. She did not want to admit to what she had been taking. She hid the truth both from parents and from her friends. The police found that the girl had bought the DNP online. The delivery of 50 tablets of 100mg of the substance was handed to a courier by an anonymous sender on 8 May. In the evening of 16 May the girl was brought to a hospital in Warsaw, but doctors could not do anything. She died the next day. Dinitrophenol is used in the chemical industry (in the production of dyes), however when  consumed by humans it amounts to a death sentence. According to Professor Fijałek, its toxic effect increases proportional to the amount ingested. Dinitrophenol causes the body’s metabolism to start to ‘burn’ its own internal organs.
Wp.pl

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Obvious What It Is

Bands that openly promote fascism and incite hatred towards other races will perform during an event in the town of Siewierz. The human rights representative of the Polish police can do nothing about this because he does not have a Facebook account. The Festival’s repertoire will not consist of folk music, Chopin, Moniuszko even though the event calls itself the ‘first national Polish’ music festival. The event has nothing to do with love towards the homeland as was the original intention of the organisers. “The patriotic slogans are used to confuse people. This is an extreme rightist event, a neo-nazi event,” says Wiktor Marszałek from the anti-fascist “Never Again” Association (Stowarzyszenie Nigdy Więcej). He claims that the police could block the event. “One of the bands has been sentenced for disseminating fascist material during a concert in Slovakia,” says Marszałek. All information about the festival is public. It was announced on the internet and has had a Facebook profile for over two months. The date of the festival is known and the performers are being systematically introduced to the public. It is obvious what the views of the musicians are. Their posters, record covers, and the videos promoting the festival speak for themselves. They are swarming with swastikas, Celtic crosses, and SS skulls. If this does not make things clear, then their music makes things extremely obvious. Their songs are racist, anti-Semitic, and homophobic. “There’s nothing we can do, this is not a mass event,” says Marta Szczerba from Siewierz Town Hall. A mass event must have at least 1,000 participants. The organisers claims that 900 participants will take part. What will happen if more come? 1,700 people have ‘liked’ the festival’s Facebook profile. Szczerba ensures us that this number will be monitored through ticket sales. Also, a number of people will come to the festival for free. “We are currently checking the list of performers. We thought this would be a hip-hop and rock concert. That is what the organisers told us,” says Zuzanna Guzik, manager of Zajazd Leśny, where the festival will take place. On Wednesday our lawyers analysed the lease agreement. We will know by Friday if there is any possibility of dissolving it.”
Wyborcza

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Stealing for the Masses

Losses resulting from petty theft in shops amount to 3% of the overall sales of these goods. Trade organisations are warning us that an increase in the limit of what is deemed a crime from PLN 250 to PLN 800 will cause even greater losses. These changes in the law will hit small businesses hardest as they do not possess the resources to invest in modern security systems. Marcin Kraszewski, director of the Polish Trade Foundation (Fundacja Polskiego Handlu) says that this idea is dangerous, both for business people, customers and society at large, especially for young people, as this amendment may lead them to think that theft stops being a crime at some point. According to the National Police Headquarters (Komenda Główna Policji), who came up with the idea of increasing this limit, the amount of PLN 250 was set in 1989 and is too low now. Furthermore, it should be raised to PLN 1,000. Supporters of this change believe that delinquency is easier to prosecute than a crime, as there is no need to involve so many police officers. Moreover, investigation time is shorter. The police, prosecutors and judges would not be burdened with so many cases, which could save money. However, the Polish Chamber of Commerce (Polska Izba Handlu) alerts the public that current regulations are already difficult to swallow for traders. There are even organised crime groups whose members specialise in stealing products worth less than PLN 250. The above-mentioned modifications would allow such people to steal goods worth up to PLN 800 with impunity, while statistics would show that the crime rate in Poland is decreasing, according to the Polish Chamber of Commerce. Marcin Kraszewski also provides the example of an owner of several gas stations, who claimed that each of his stations loses PLN 2,000–3,000 due to theft alone of fuel not exceeding PLN 250 in value. The Polish Trade Foundation, as well the Polish Chamber of Commerce want to convince MPs not to implement these changes.
Interia.pl

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Warsaw Chopin Airport

Ryanair has submitted a complaint against “Polish Airports” State Enterprise (PPL) to the European Commission and the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK), accusing it of making an attempt to impose discriminatory trading conditions for the company at Warsaw. Currently, Ryanair is obliged to make payments for airport services in advance, while LOT Polish Airlines have PPL’s permission to pay with significant delays. Ryanair claims that the purpose of this discrimination is to support the state carrier. Juliusz Komorek, the director of Legal and Regulatory Affairs at Ryanair, says that the airline has always fulfilled its financial obligations to the airport on time and stated that there is no credit risk resulting from the cooperation of PLL with Ryanair. “PPL is currently trying to force Ryanair to pay airport fees before each flight because, as they claim, the risk that Ryanair will not pay invoices on time is high. Last week, Ryanair announced record profits, which amounted to over EUR 569 million (after tax) and the company possesses cash reserves of over EUR 3.5 billion, which only confirms that PPL’s arguments are unfounded. PPL’s claims and demands seems to be unfair, especially taking into consideration the fact that LOT is provided with extremely favourable payment terms,” said Komorek. According to Ryanair, the reason for such behaviour is to obtain money which can be later used to finance LOT’s operation at Warsaw airport.
Onet.pl

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Polish ‘Grill’

Polish people have fallen in love with the BBQ (pol. gril). It has become a new Polish national sport probably due to the fact that nobody loses and everyone’s a winner. The sun comes out of the clouds, the temperature rises and the ‘grilling season’ begins. The craziness begins every Friday evening in grocery shops. Everyone grabs something that can be put on the BBQ and makes use of every possible blade of grass to set up their barbecue. In 2006, the Polish team won the world championships in barbecuing. “Since then Poles have been at the forefront of grilling and have now been invited to its most prestigious event, the Jack Daniel’s BBQ Competition in Lynchburg,” said a proud Grzegorz Kazubski, president of the Polish Barbecue Association. The Polish BBQ team is so well known that Poland has been entrusted with the organisation of the European BBQ Championships. Everyone has their favourite food – Americans love pork ribs and steak. Poles, on the other hand, opt for pork neck, black pudding and sausage. Grzegorz Kazubski recommends grilling white sausage instead of the traditional one, as sausages which have been previously smoked can emit harmful substances when thrown on the barbecue. The truth is that knowing how to grill is a skill that not everyone possesses.
Newsweek.pl

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