Delays in the Vistula spit canal excavation due to protests of Belgian MEPs could be damaging to the Polish state, declared Poland’s Chief of the Prime Minister’s Chancellery Michał Dworczyk.
Dworczyk is referring to Belgian MEPs’ demand for the European Commission to intervene to stop the Vistula Spit excavation. He underlined that the Polish government’s position concerning its investment in the project remains unchanged due to the economic and political benefits it is expected to offer.
One of the primary benefits would allow access to the Vistula Lagoon from the Baltic Sea and allow ships to avoid the Russian-controlled Strait of Baltiysk.
He commented on those protesting the project, claiming that “we are dealing with a row of initiatives, some of them in my opinion carried out by people who in good faith are letting themselves be entangled into all sorts of quarrels generated solely by environmentalists who want to hurt Poland.”
Dworczyk pointed out that some of those environmentalists are “looking East” due to the success of Poland’s swift execution of the excavation.
“Any delay of the excavation will be a serious detriment to the Polish state,” he emphasized.
PiS MP Kazimierz Smoliński also criticized the protests on Twitter, saying, “Belgian ‘ecologists’ call for the EC to intervene in Poland due to the excavation. The investment is not good for the Kremlin and suddenly “ecologists” from all over Europe start to protest. I’ve got news for them – the excavation will happen.”
The Vistula Spit project is meant to help construct a waterway approximately 1 kilometer long and 5 meters deep and will improve access to the Polish port in Elbląg.
The canal is slated to be completed by 2022.
Up until the 13th century, a natural strait existed in the Vistula Spit, allowing access for ships. However, once access was blocked naturally, the port of Elblag suffered a substantial loss in trade.
