Polluted and Poisoned - Poland’s Vistula at Risk

Renata Wlazik has been battling for six years to avert environmental disaster in Poland. Over the years, toxic residues from the former Zachem arms and chemical plant at Bydgoszcz have seeped into the water table, threatening wildlife in the Vistula. Geoscientist Professor Mariusz Czop from the Academy of Mining and Metallurgy agrees that the river’s entire ecosystem is at risk. For years now, he and his team have been examining the impact of the contamination. Local authorities are aware of situation at the former plant. But officials can’t see any great urgency, and warehouses and logistics centers have now been set up on part of the site. Renata Wlazik finds this ignorance intolerable. She writes petitions, complains to politicians and reports her concerns to the police. But all to no avail. Renata is convinced that the toxins are making people sick. In Legnowo, close to the former Zachem site, residents have died of cancer. Renata is also experiencing health problems herself. Some have reacted in a hostile manner to her campaign, calling her unpatriotic. She’s been threatened and says no one will give her a job. But the 45-year-old single mother is determined to continue her fight until the site is finally decontaminated. She couldn’t square it with her conscience if she did nothing, she says.