人们常常把波兰称做煤炭的国家,并不是偶然的。这不仅因为煤的蕴藏量丰富,按人口平均的产量高,更重要的是,它对波兰的国计民生具有特别重要的意义。煤,是波兰的原料和动力经济的基础,又是外汇的主要来源。正因为如此,波兰人自己也把煤叫做“黑色的金子”。据估计,波兰的煤的蕴藏量达八百二十亿吨。大部分埋藏在共和国南部和西南部的西里西亚地区。波兰最大的煤田有两个:一是上西里西亚煤田,也是欧洲最大的煤田之一。这个煤田的主要部分位于卡托维兹省;二是下西里西亚煤田,位于瓦尔布日赫附近,因而又叫做瓦尔布日赫煤田。但是,如果拿这两个煤田相比较,上西里西亚煤田显然宏大得多。它占波兰煤的全部藏量和开采量的95%以上,而波兰全国六十六座煤矿中,有五十多座就集中在上西里西亚。褐煤和泥炭矿的分布面积就更广。解放前,褐煤 It is no accident that people often refer to Poland as a country of coal. This is not only because of the rich reserves of coal and its high average output per population, but more importantly, it is of particular importance to the national economy and the people’s livelihood in Poland. Coal, the raw material for Poland and the basis of a dynamic economy, is also the main source of foreign exchange. Because of this, the Poles themselves call coal “black gold.” It is estimated that Poland’s coal reserves amount to 82 billion tons. Most are buried in the Silesian region in the south and south-west of the Republic. There are two of Poland’s largest coalfields: the Upper Silesian coalfield and one of the largest coalfields in Europe. The main part of the coalfield is located in Katowice; the second is the Lower Silesian coalfield, near Valbuzhh, hence the name Valbuzhh coal field. However, the Upper Silesia coalfields are clearly much larger than the two coal fields. It accounts for over 95% of the total reserves and production of Polish coal, while over 50 of the country’s 61 coal mines are concentrated in Upper Silesia. The distribution of lignite and peat mines is even wider. Before liberation, lignite