Pavel: Money saved on ČSA quarry recultivation should reach all municipalities via the Environment Ministry

Czech President Petr Pavel has said that the money saved by the company Sev.en on the recultivation of the ČSA coal quarry should be distributed among all municipalities in the region through the Ministry of the Environment, rather than left to the company's own discretion.

"In this case we're talking about roughly 700 million crowns, and as I understand it, Sev.en wants to give the municipalities around 200 million. It's clear to see there's a major imbalance here," Pavel said. According to an earlier statement by Sev.en Group manager Luboš Pavlas, municipalities are set to receive 213 million crowns out of the 470 million saved.

Company blames official inaction

Sev.en has justified its plan to handle the funds independently by pointing to the sluggishness of the state administration, which, according to the company, spent nearly a year unable to respond to the proposed terms of the intended donation. Talks with the State Environmental Fund, the company claims, went nowhere.

In the second half of August, the Ministry of the Environment announced that negotiations with Sev.en Group had resumed. Environment Minister Igor Červený (Motoristé party) said all parties share the same goal: that the region's municipalities receive the saved funds, ideally still this year.

Coal mining has ended, but questions remain

Brown coal mining at the ČSA quarry ended in 2024. Instead of technical recultivation, the Ministry of the Environment approved a natural restoration method — part of the site will be left to overgrow and be flooded, a move that allowed Sev.en Group to cut costs. According to available information, in mid-August the situation surrounding the quarry's recultivation drew the attention of the National Organised Crime Agency.

The environmental organisations Duha and Greenpeace Czech Republic have previously said they fear that Sev.en Group owner Pavel Tykač intends to keep most of the money saved on recultivation for himself instead of channelling it into the region's development.

Source: ekolist.cz