The Polish Geological Institute-NRI is an entity supervised by the Minister of Climate and Environment, who annually evaluates its finances, activities, including the implementation of the tasks of the Polish Geological Survey and the National Administrator of Underground Carbon Dioxide Storage Sites. For 2020, the Institute received a positive assessment with some objections.
The Minister's decision was based, inter alia, on the analysis of the "Report on the activities of the Polish Geological Institute-National Research Institute for the year 2020", the opinion of the PGI-NRI Scientific Council, the results of the ministerial audit, as well as audits by other entities, and the opinions of other institutions cooperating with the Institute.
The year 2020 was exceptional due to the global pandemic and having to switch to a remote system of work, but the Institute once again proved its great scientific and research potential. The work conducted was mainly aimed at ensuring the country's raw material security, as well as at environmental protection and water management. Some of the research conducted by the Institute was considered groundbreaking in the country and it even brings the value of novelty to world research.
In 2020, the Polish Geological Institute - NRI was developing a total of 539 projects. The subject matter of the works conducted was consistent with the statutory tasks of the Polish Geological Survey and took into account the guidelines of strategic documents in the field of raw materials, energy and environmental policies.
The most important projects carried out by the Institute were aimed at identifying regional geological structure and the support issues related to raw material. Reserves were estimated; perspective regions were delineated that have the potential for the discovery of new hydrocarbon deposits. Studies were continued on the possible occurrence of ore mineralization in Upper Silesia and Lower Silesia, as well as the Suwałki Region and the Polish economic zone of the Baltic Sea. Activities supporting the development of geothermal energy in Poland were intensified. Moreover, an evaluation of raw-material and energy potential of thermal and therapeutic waters in cities and selected areas of the country was carried out together with an analysis of geoenvironmental and economic conditions of their use. Moreover, works were conducted aimed at the assessment of energy potential and environmental conditions to support sustainable development of low-temperature geothermal energy, i.e. use of ground-source heat pumps.
Thermal analysis of rocks
In 2020, the Institute worked on numerous tasks related to geological cartography. The most important of them are the compilation and updating of geological maps at various scales, as well as their preparation in a digital format, including GIS databases. The making of 3D geological models is an innovative task, which allows for the analysis of data more effectively and to conduct various other types of analyses.
The Institute is working on the creation of the Polish Geological Cartography Platform, which will gather and provide access to about 20 thousand cartographic products in the form of graphic and text files and will provide the ability to conduct spatial data analyses.
In 2020 PGI-NRI was the general contractor for projects concerning urban geology, rational subsurface management, the use of geological environment potential for the purposes of construction and assessment of the suitability of areas for infrastructure investments.
Conducting geoengineering fieldwork as one of the tasks of the Polish Geological Survey
Projects connected with the identification and monitoring of geological hazards, especially mass movements (landslides), were continued. The Institute was continuously providing the necessary information to the authorities responsible for crisis management.
PGI-NRI collects, archives, secures, processes and provides access to geological information, being its main depositary in Poland. Modern methods of management of information and IT resources were introduced to increase the availability of data.
In 2020, activities related to geological heritage and geodiversity protection, as well as to the dissemination and promotion of geological knowledge, occupied an important position among the Institute's tasks. Scientific conferences (during the pandemic they were online), contests, field games and exhibitions were organized.
The projects carried out by the Polish Geological Survey were 100% financed from the funds of the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management, including the Chief Inspectorate for Environmental Protection, under Priority Programs: The Identification of Geological Structure for the Country and Support of Environmental Monitoring Activities. The remaining projects carried out by the Institute were financed from the government budget - in parts at the disposition of the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, including those carried out by the National Science Centre (NCN), National Centre for Research and Development (NCBiR) and Operational Programs, or the funds for their implementation were obtained from domestic and foreign enterprises, local governments, research institutes and universities and other entities and organizations. Some projects have been financed from the budgets of the European Union and of other international organizations.
As proof of our recognition and effectiveness, PGI-NRI has received two prestigious awards in the Eco-laurels 2020 contest and the title of EcoSymbol 2020, which is awarded to representatives of business and science who attach great importance to ecology and care for the natural environment. The award was granted to PGI-NRI for its research identifying of the geothermal energy potential in Poland.
Despite the ongoing pandemic, the year 2020 was a very busy one for us, and the achieved results consolidated the good position of the Polish Geological Institute - NRI as an entity fulfilling the role of the geological survey and of a research and scientific institution.
Translated by Tomasz Trzpil (PGI-NRI)
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