Discussion Papers 1993.
Spatial Research and the Social-Political Changes 7-14. p.
DEVELOPMENT OF SPATIAL PLANNING
7
DEVELOPMENT OF SPATIAL PLANNING
IN POLAND ON REGIONAL AND COUNTRY-WIDE
SCALE
ANDRZEJ STASIAK
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS
Poland, like Hungary and Czechoslovakia, is at present in a transitory period from the
so-called socialist system to a, more or less controlled, market economy. During the
previous period, decisions concerning the country's socio-economic-spatial development
were made in the so-called "center" and were implemented through the order-and-allocate
system. One of the instruments of this system was spatial planning, defined as, for in-
stance, the location of large investment projects both in industry and other branches, e.g.
the development of transport network and also the establishment of universities, cultural
centers and broadly conceived housing.
Such decisions had an essential influence on the distribution of population and on the
changes in the settlement system of the country and its regions.
At present we are, as mentioned above, in a transitory period. Plans of spatial organiz-
ation on macro and meso scales have lost their function to date, and nowadays there is a
discussion as to the future role of these plans. Personally, I am of the opinion that we still
need a strategy of socio-economic-spatial development for Poland to join the rest of Eu-
rope. We also need a regional policy to define the main directions of regional develop-
ment, which would account for the needs of the state as a whole and of its regions. Repre-
sentatives of territorial self-governing bodies should take an active part in this process.
This would concern first of all problems such as: border regions, economically backward
regions (especially agricultural ones), regions requiring the restructuring of industry (e.g.
Upper Silesia and Lodi), or regions of highly valued natural environment. Similarly, ter-
ritories which are at present economically active, such as the agglomerations of Warsaw
and Poznaii where there is a spontaneous development of the private sector, also require a
well thought-out spatial policy. This policy is needed to prevent spatial chaos which could
hinder the future development of these areas, making it more difficult for the inhabitants
living there, and leading to ecological threats (especially threats to the natural environ-
ment). There is an awareness of such a need in the developed countries of Europe as well,
and in almost all of these countries there exists regional planning.
That is why I consider it proposeful to present the development and the state of spatial
planning on macro and meso scales in Poland starting at the period before World War II
and ending at the present time.
Andrzej Stasiak : Development of Spatial Planning in Poland on Regional and Country-Wide Scale.
In: Spatial Research and the Social-Political Changes. Pécs: Centre foe Regional Studies,
1993. 7-14. p. Discussion Papers. Special
8
ANDRZEJ STASIAK
HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT UNTIL THE PRESENT
The pre-war period
The efforts to formulate a concept for spatial organization of the country have a rela-
- tively long tradition in Poland. However, it is not the purpose of this sketchy paper to
present the problem as a whole, for this would require a separate, broader study.
The first of such full-fledged efforts was undertaken in the years 1936-1939 when,
under the leadership of Vice Prime Minister Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski, ambitious plans to
accelerate economic development in Poland started to be implemented through the realiz-
ation of large, 'large' to be understood on the scale of that time, industrial investment
projects. These plans were connected, for instance, with the establishment of the so-called
Central Industrial Region, located in principle at the confluence of the Rivers Vistula and
San but encompassing, in fact, a much broader area (a part of the Lublin province and a
part of the Kielce province). These significant investment projects required broadly con-
ceived studies, accounting for their relations to technical infrastructure (especially trans-
port and energy), labour resources, settlement network etc. This entailed the need to estab-
lish a special team of specialists devoted to the subject entirely, connecting the economic
and the spatial approach. The need resulted in the creation of a special detachment within
the Ministry of Finance, headed by S. Melessa, which elaborated the first planning studies
covering the whole country. I It should be noted that simultaneously there was regional
planning developing in Poland in the 1930s under the supervision of the Ministry of Home
Affairs. On the basis of an order of its minister, ten areas were defined and legally estab-
lished, for which regional plans were to be elaborated. In 1937 regional planning was
encompassing some 50% of Polish territory. 2 The development of spatial planning on the
scale of regions and of the whole country was interrupted in 1939 by the outbreak of the
war.
The years 1946-1949
After World War II, on the basis of the decree of June 2nd, 1946, concerning the
planned spatial organization of the country, the Main Office of Spatial Planning (GUPP)
was established, and was affiliated with the Ministry of Reconstruction, directed by M.
Kaczorowski. The main task of this Office was to elaborate the concept and the plan of
spatial organization of the country. This plan was to define:
(1)
areas meant for agriculture, forestry, mining, industry, water economy,
culture, education, health, recreation and for nature reserves;
(2)
distribution of population and the network of main urban centers with
fundamentals of their development and functions determined;
(3)
the network of services in the domains of transport, communication and
energy;
Andrzej Stasiak : Development of Spatial Planning in Poland on Regional and Country-Wide Scale.
In: Spatial Research and the Social-Political Changes. Pécs: Centre foe Regional Studies,
1993. 7-14. p. Discussion Papers. Special
DEVELOPMENT OF SPATIAL PLANNING
9
(4)
division of the country's area into regions, as a basis for the uniform
administrative breakdown of the state.
Regional Planning Directorates, subordinate to the Main Office, co-operated with it. 3
is obvious that this broad and ambitious undertaking inevitably encountered serious It
difficulties resulting both from the lack of fundamental data and adequate human resour-
ces (there was a change of boundaries, research and data collection were interrupted by
the war, and scarce human resources were dispersed by it) as well as from difficulties in
determining the direction of future socio-economic development. The latter problems
were within the scope of competence of the Central Planning Office (CUP) whose plan-
ning horizon was short, while spatial transformations are only conceivable in a longer
time horizon. That is why it is in GUPP that interesting studies of the country-wide plan
were elaborated, having more of the character of forecasting hypotheses and methodo-
logical value.
The period 1949-1970
After both GUPP and CUP had been dissolved in 1949, and the State Committee for
Economic Planning had been established, spatial planning on a country-wide scale for-
mally ceased to exist. It can be assumed, though, that the concept of distribution of pro-
ductive forces contained by the Six-Year Plan (1949-1955), was, to some extent, founded
on the studies and analyses of GUPP. 4 This Six-Year Plan contained something like a
substitute for the plan of spatial organization of the country. In the years 1955-1957, in the
Association of Polish Town Planning (TUP) a lively discussion was started concerning the
necessity of the revival of regional and country-wide spatial planning in connection with
economic planning In 1956, the Planning Commission at the Council of Ministers started
to work on the long-term plan of national development including the program of spatial
organization, while the elaboration of regional plans was handed over to voivodships
(provinces). The law on spatial planning of January 31st, 1961 was ultimately the legal
basis for spatial planning. This law considered the goal of spatial planning as: "ensuring
adequate development for particular areas of the country". This goal was to be attained
through "determination, for particular areas, of purposes and the manner of development
of land meant for definite purposes, with due consideration of current and future needs,
resulting from the socio-economic development program". Thus, spatial planning (both
regional and country-wide) was closely connected with economic development planning
and was, at that time, entirely within the scope of competence of the Planning Com-
mission. Within this Commission, the Group of Long-Term Planning was established, and
since 1966, this Group also contained the Team of Spatial Organization of the Country.
The time horizon for the long-term ("perspective") plans was determined to be 15-20
years, while the so-called directional plan had the time horizon until the year 2000.5
Andrzej Stasiak : Development of Spatial Planning in Poland on Regional and Country-Wide Scale.
In: Spatial Research and the Social-Political Changes. Pécs: Centre foe Regional Studies,
1993. 7-14. p. Discussion Papers. Special
10
ANDRZEI STASIAK
The years 1971-1982
The socio-economic, and also political, crisis at the end of the 1960s and the beginning
of the 1970s brought as an effect the change in the governing group and, with them, new
concepts of accelerated development of the country. It was namely held that, among other
factors, the lack of long-term concepts of socio-economic-spatial development for Poland
contributed to economic stagnation and, consequently, to numerous spatial conflicts. In
connection with this, the Prime Minister issued the order of no.10 of January 24th, 1972,
concerning the elaboration of the spatial organization plan of the country and the regional
plans (unpublished). On the basis of this action, work on the design for the spatial organ-
ization plan for the country started with the aim of finishing it by June 30th, 1973. 6
Together with this, work on the designs of three macroregional plans covering altogether
some 40% of the country's surface, was to be finished by December 31st, 1973, along
with the designs of regional plans, to be finished by May 15th, 1973. (17 regions of that
time were constituted by 12 voivodships and 5 voivodships coupled with separate urban
areas of voivodship status: Warsaw, Cracow, Lodi, Poznan and Wroclaw)
In the issue no.85 of the Bulletin of the Committee for Spatial Organization of the
Country, Polish Academy of Sciences (KPZK PAN) the design for the spatial organization
plan for Poland until 1990 was published 7 elaborated under the leadership of R. Grabo-
,
wiecki. This plan was accepted by the Political Bureau of the Communist Party and by the
Government's Presidium. Hence, as is noted by A. Pyszkowski in his analysis, for the first
time in Poland, the system of large-space plans was elaborated encompassing a country-
wide plan, plans of selected macroregions and regional plans. 8 Still, this plan of spatial
development was not presented for acceptance to the Polish Parliament (Seym) and there-
fore did not turn into law. According to A. Pyszkowski this resulted, in particular, from the
• fact that a new administrative breakdown of the country was under preparation at that
time. This new breakdown was effectively introduced in June 1975 and it demolished the
whole system of socio-economic-spatial planning to date. To replace 22 voivodship units,
corresponding to 17 regions, 49 new voivodships were created and poviats (counties)
were abolished. In order to secure, to at least some extent, the capacity of co-ordination of
voivodship development plans, in July 1975, eight regional planning branches of the Plan-
ning Commission, seated in respective regions, were established under the order no.24 of
the Chairman of the Planning Commission. The task of these branches was to co-ordinate,
to some degree, the study and planning work concerning the development of voivodships
within the framework of the so-called development plans of macroregions, encompassing
with their spatial stretch four to eight voivodsips. Their other task was to transmit the
contents of decisions resulting from the country-wide plan down to the voivodships en-
compassed by the co-ordination scope of a given branch. From a formal point of view,
defined by the laws on spatial planning and on the administrative breakdown of the
country, macroregions were institutions with competences and, in principle, legally un-
determined.
The impending economic crisis and the lack of a concept for further development
hampered work on the plan for the spatial organization of the country, and the events of
the beginning of the 1980s were not advantageous for this work either.
Andrzej Stasiak : Development of Spatial Planning in Poland on Regional and Country-Wide Scale.
In: Spatial Research and the Social-Political Changes. Pécs: Centre foe Regional Studies,
1993. 7-14. p. Discussion Papers. Special
DEVELOPMENT OF SPATIAL PLANNING
11
After 1982
Enactment of new laws concerning:
(1)
socio-economic planning (of February 26th, 1982),
(2)
the system of local councils and territorial self-government (of July
20th, 1983), and
(3)
spatial planning (of July 12th, 1984)
formed the basis for resuscitation of long-term and "perspective" planning, and for spatial
planning as well. Central authorities felt the need to undertake some kind of study work,
too. This found its reflection in the order no.7 of the Chairman of the Planning Com-
mission, dated February 23rd, 1983, which stimulated "analytic and study work as well as
forecasts allowing to identify problems and conditions for the country's spatial policy and
regional development". 9 The outline for the prerequisites to the spatial organization plan
of the country, developed under the leadership of A. Pyszkowski in the Group of Spatial
Organization of the Country within the Planning Commission of the Council of Ministers,
had initially a time perspective extending until 1995. After discussions, held e.g. at the
10
plenary meeting of KPZK PAN on May 15th, 1986
, or in the State Council of Spatial
Economy as well as at other consultations, the plan outline obtained the common time
horizon of the year 2000, together with the outline for the socio-economic development
and structural policy plan. Both of these documents, presented as separate volumes after
they had been accepted by the Council of Ministers, were, according to the law enactment
procedure, transmitted by Prime Minister Z. Messner to the Seym of the Polish People's
Republic. 11 Article 16.1 of the law on spatial planning stipulates that: "The design for the
country plan is submitted by the Council of Ministers for consideration of the Seym, along
with the perspective plan of socio-economic development. Decision taken by the Seym
regarding country plan determines, in particular, goals and principles of the spatial policy
of the state".
THE PRESENT
As is known, the designs of the end of 1988 were taken back from the Seym and the
new Parliament elected in 1989 did not consider them any more. On the basis of the fun-
damental prerequisites of the document concerning the spatial part of the country plan, a
new version was elaborated, lacking the nature of a formal Country-Wide Plan but a
"long-term concept of spatial organization of the country". This new version was accepted
by the Council of Ministers on July 30th, 1990, and then widely disseminated in Autumn,
1990. 12 It should be emphasized that the new document contains a profound analysis of
the state of organization of Polish space, an effort at defining the main (potential) direc-
tions of long-term development, as well as considerations of the threats to the solutions
proposed. Attention was also paid to spatial connections of Poland within Europe, with
regard to some selected aspects. In my opinion the presentation of these items is too mod-
est. The document is composed of three parts:
Andrzej Stasiak : Development of Spatial Planning in Poland on Regional and Country-Wide Scale.
In: Spatial Research and the Social-Political Changes. Pécs: Centre foe Regional Studies,
1993. 7-14. p. Discussion Papers. Special
12
ANDRZEJ STASIAK
"Spatial policy of the state"
Here, emphasis was placed upon conclusions from the diagnosis of the state of spatial
economy and upon conclusions from forecasts concerning long-term socio-economic de-
velopment. Great emphasis was placed upon the problems of natural environment. And
thus, it was stated that the non-rational development to date resulted in the situation in
which there are 27 areas of imminent ecological danger within the territory of Poland,
occupying altogether 11% of the country's total surface but inhabited by 35% of the popu-
lation. There are environmental threats especially dangerous for agriculture in the regions
of Legnica and Glogow, Upper Silesia and Cracow, Tamobrzeg, the delta of the River
Vistula (a part of the tulawy area), the lower River Odra and the Sudety Mountains. On
the other hand, the North-Eastern part of the country is constituted of areas which until
now were little disturbed environmentally. That is why these areas were defined already
in 1988 as the functional region "The Green Lungs of Poland". This functional region is
composed of the following five voivodships at present: Bialystok, Lom2a, Olsztyn, Su-
walki and Ostroleka. A macroregional plan of spatial organization for "The Green Lungs
of Poland" is under elaboration now.
The diagnosis presented implies also that within the territory of Poland there are ten
so-called problem areas, three of which are connected with forest and agricultural econ-
omy. These areas are: Sudety, North-Eastern Poland (especially Bialystok, Lom2a, Suwal-
ki, partly Biala Podlaska and Chelm voivodships), and the region of the potential intensi-
. fication of the development of food economy (Zamo§d-Sandomierz). It is essential for
studies concerning future development to have estimates on potential changes in numbers
and distribution of population. It is assumed that by 2000 the whole population of Poland
will have reached some 40 million, while rural population will have decreased slightly
down to 14 million. There will be, on the other hand, essential transformations in the
occupational structure in the countryside (a decrease in the employment in agriculture, an
increase in the employment in services, especially in rural and agricultural services). It is
difficult to say whether this will be so. For the important increase in unemployment,
which is envisaged at present, mainly in industry and construction, might slow down the
pace of structural transformations in agriculture and in occupational structures of the rural
population.
"Resources and directions of spatial organization in the country"
In the author's opinion, the most important questions here are taken up in point 2.3,
Food economy, and presented in Map no.9. Paragraph 100 (p.75) states that "The analyses
conducted indicate that the greatest effects regarding the increase in agricultural produc-
tion could occur in the areas of: Greater Poland and Cuiavia where the level of technical
equipment and agricultural tradition create the capacities for significant production
growth under the condition of improvement in water supply for agriculture and for rural
settlements (...), Zamogd-Sandomierz region, a large area of the best soils in Poland,
Andrzej Stasiak : Development of Spatial Planning in Poland on Regional and Country-Wide Scale.
In: Spatial Research and the Social-Political Changes. Pécs: Centre foe Regional Studies,
1993. 7-14. p. Discussion Papers. Special
DEVELOPMENT OF SPATIAL PLANNING
13
whose productive utilization is still relatively low due to shortcomings in the equipment
of rural areas with technical and social infrastructure facilities (...)."
Paragraph 105 turns the attention towards the fragmentation of agricultural land in the
farms of South-Eastern Poland: "It is expected that in the South-Eastern part of the
country, characterized by particularly high fragmentation of farmland, the domination of
bi-occupational farms will persist."
Still, the "long-term concept..." did not envisage such a rapid growth of unemploy-
ment in this region, which could cause it to become, as well, a problem area of the spatial
economy in the not too distant future.
"Problems in the implementation of concepts for the spatial organization
of the country"
In view of far reaching changes in the structure of authorities and the expected further
transformations, this part of the document commented upon has partly gone out of date. It
is, though, certainly still valid to monitor changes in the spatial organization of the
country and to postulate further research, especially in the quickly changing socio-econ-
omic situation of Poland. Point 3 of this part of the document considered refers to threats
against the implementation of the spatial organisation plan of the country and presents
synthetically these threats in Map no.16. This map implies that
(1)
there may appear a wide area threatened by socio-economic depression,
a broad belt stretching from the Eastern boundary of Poland through
Bialystok-Lomta-Ostroleka voivodships (areas dominated by private
farming, mainly on weak soils);
(2)
there is a possibility of imminent threat towards agricultural land, even
down to the outward elimination of these areas from agricultural use,
due to shortcomings in infrastructural equipment, regarding mainly
ulawy in the delta of the River Vistula, the area of rich soils (more than
80 points on the average on the Polish 100-point scale);
(3)
there is a possibility of the appearance of two large areas of cumulation
and compounding of threats" concerning the Lower Silesian region and
the Upper Silesian-Cracovian region (from Opole in the West to Cracow
and its vicinity). In particular, in the region of Lower Silesia this area of
cumulation and growth of threats" would encompass part of an area
with very good soils called the Lower Silesian Plate.
Andrzej Stasiak : Development of Spatial Planning in Poland on Regional and Country-Wide Scale.
In: Spatial Research and the Social-Political Changes. Pécs: Centre foe Regional Studies,
1993. 7-14. p. Discussion Papers. Special
14
ANDRZEJ STASIAK
NOTES
See e.g. MALISZ, B. 1983: Przeksztalcenie przestrzennej struktury zagospodarowania Polski. Koncepcja-
praktyka-rezultaty (Transformation of the spatial structure of development of Poland. Concepts-practice -re-
sults) — In: Planowanie Przestrzenne — PWE, Warszawa — pp.206-207.
2 MRZYGLOD, T. 1958: Planowanie Regionalne (Regional Planning) — PWE, Warszawa — p.35.
3 See MALISZ, B. op. cit. p.208.
4 ZAWADZKI, ST. M. 1969: Podstawy planowania regionalnego (Foundations of regional planning) — PWE,
Warszawa — p.208.
5 After ZAWADZKI, ST. M. op. cit. pp.35-37. and 42-43.
• 6 PYSZKOWSKI, A. 1987: Planowanie w ukladach regionalnych w Polsce (Planning in the regional setting in
Poland) — Biuletyn KPZK PAN, 132 — Warszawa — pp.57-59.
Plan przestrzennego zagospodarowania kraju do 1990 roku (Plan of spatial organization of the country until
1990) — Biuletyn KPZK PAN, 85 — Warszawa, 1974
8 PYSZKOWSKI, A. op. cit. pp.82-84.
9 Zalotenia planu perspektywicznego zagospodarowania kraju do 1995. Projekt (Prerequisites for the perspec-
tive plan of country's development until 1995. Draft) — Komisja Planowania przy RW — Warszawa, Oc-
tober 1985 — p.5.
10 Zalotenia planu przestrzennego zagospodarowania kraju (Prerequisites for the spatial organization plan of the
country) — Biuletyn KPZK PAN, 136 —Warszawa, 1987
This publication presents prerequisites to the plan, results of consultations and discussions.
it Plan perspektywiczny do 2000 r. Czcgd I: Rozw6j spoleczno-gospodarczy i polityka strukturalna, i Czek II:
Przestrzenne zagospodarowanie kraju (Perspective plan until 2000. Part I: Socio-economic development and
structural policy, and Part II: Spatial organization of the country) — Planning Commission at the Council of
Ministers — Warszawa, September 1988 — (outline)
12 Dlugookresowa koncepcja przestrzennego zagospodarowania kraju (Long-term concept of spatial organiza-
tion of the country) — CUP — Warszawa, September 1990 — (some 130 pp., tables and 17 maps)