Production of Well-Being

Text by Klara Jörg

Europe's coal phase-out by 2050 will not only cause infrastructural change in many regions of the EU, but social and community structures are also in danger of disintegration. While populations in cities that were dependent on the coal industry are facing lifestyle changes influenced by urban renewable energy production (Communal Power Plant I), in some places entire rural areas are undergoing social and geological changes.

Influenced by both transregional and local systems, the Ústi nad Laben region in the Czech Republic developed a unique appearance. As one of the largest coal mining areas in the country and in the whole of Europe, the region belongs to the so-called "Black Triangle". This refers to the border region between Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic, which for a long time was characterized by extremely high levels of air pollution. Conditioned and used by the coal industry, the flow of the Elbe River, as well as the crossing of the area of the railroad line Berlin - Prague (Vienna), create strong connections with the surrounding areas of Europe.

The project Communal Power Plant II is dedicated to a reinterpretation of territorial and landscape potentials created by coal mining and now by its phase-out: The geological occurrences of entire regions created networks and dependencies that, in the context of a coal phase-out, lead to new ways of life and economic pull factors in line with renewable energy production through a redefinition of these very things.

Created by strong volcanic activity in the Tertiary era, the region's basin was filled by natural precipitation, which in turn created the basis for the high coal deposits. Even today, the region's new and old watercourses bear witness to the former basin landscape, while the railroad network ensured the region's economic boom through its connection to the surrounding countryside. Existing and historical settlements and industrial infrastructure are located along the two systems - mostly at their intersections in the catchment area of the Bílina River.

The river connects most of the mining pits as well as urban settlements in the region and therefore serves as an ideal test case. The analysis of the topography and land use of the river basin shows the immense impact of coal mining on the region. For example, the man-made lowest point in the Czech Republic is located in the Bílina open pit mine, which is expected to remain in operation until at least 2030. Other mining areas are already in the process of renaturation.

The in-depth analysis of the existing situation revealed potentials in three thematic groups:

- renewable energy production

- climatic necessities social

- economic opportunities

The various potentials are found along the region's waterways and rail infrastructure, i.e. in and around (former) coal mining areas. In this way, the proposed project anchors itself in an existing network by exploring new reinterpretations identified through the means of contemporary situational urban planning.

Resulting in a "Land of Plenty" - Schlaraffenland - the new interventions fit into the existing system of waterways and rail infrastructure that connects the region with the rest of Europe. By revitalizing the region for people and nature, both locals and tourists will find an amazing landscape of well-being. The implementation of renewable energy production with linked strategies to improve the region's microclimate, as well as the creation of new job opportunities, spaces for social encounters and physical well-being, create an area that celebrates its long-forgotten beauty.