“We are happy that this traditional craft can be
hosted on the premises of our site and that we can support beekeepers in their
activities. The results of their efforts can also be seen in the form of the
gold medal awarded for the sixth time in a row, which the beekeepers won for
the excellent quality of honey in the Czech Honey competition,” says Piotr Kearney, executive director of
Spolana.
This trail for the broader public
will provide visitors with various interesting facts about beekeeping and the
bees themselves. Moreover, the interpretive bee trail should be complemented in
the future with additional bee-related elements, such as a traditional carved log
beehive (hive carved from a spruce or fir log). Until now, Spolana only allowed
children from local primary schools to see all the secrets behind this
traditional craft. Before summer, they regularly participate in the honey
harvest, helping beekeepers harvest the honey and learning interesting facts
about the process from them.
“A great deal of effort has been put into the trail’s construction,
but we are delighted that with Spolana’s support, we have managed to realise
this beautiful educational project. All who are interested in connecting a
visit to nature with learning many interesting facts about the world of
beekeeping and the life of bees can now visit the interpretive trail,” says Antonín Šlajs, executive of the Libiš
branch of the Czech Beekeepers Union.
Spolana is very active in its
support of the neighbouring environment. In collaboration with the Neratovice
branch of the Czech Anglers Union, it regularly releases different fish species
into the River Elbe (for instance, carp, pike and zander). At the same time, it
takes care of the peregrine falcons that regularly nest at the Spolana site in
collaboration with the non-profit organisation ALKA Wildlife. The vicinity of
the production site, especially the biological pond, has become a popular haven
for a host of protected and threatened animal species. The cleanliness of the
site is confirmed by the presence of river otters, common teals, common
kingfishers and trout, i.e. animals that are highly sensitive to the quality of
the environment.
SPOLANA s.r.o. is one
of the largest chemical manufacturing companies in the Czech Republic. The only
manufacturer of PVC and caprolactam also produces ammonium sulphate and
sulphuric acid. It currently employs over 700 people. Spolana has been owned by
the ORLEN Unipetrol Group since 2016. The ORLEN Unipetrol Group is the largest
refining and petrochemical company in the Czech Republic. It focuses on crude
oil processing and production, distributing and selling fuels and petrochemical
products – mainly plastics and fertilisers. It is one of the major players in
the Czech and Central European markets in all these areas. The ORLEN Unipetrol
Group includes refineries and production plants in Litvínov and Kralupy nad
Vltavou, Paramo in Pardubice, Spolana in Neratovice, and two research centres
in Litvínov and Brno. ORLEN Unipetrol also includes the ORLEN network of
filling stations in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. ORLEN Unipetrol
is one of the largest companies in the Czech Republic in terms of turnover. It
employs almost 6,000 people. In addition to its business development, ORLEN
Unipetrol is proud to be a socially responsible corporation. Therefore, it pays
equal attention to initiatives focusing on cultivating and supporting
sustainable development, education, local communities, and the environment. In
2005, ORLEN Unipetrol became part of the PKN Orlen Group, the largest oil
processor in Central Europe.
Contact details: Pavel Kaidl,
spokesperson, telephone: +420
225 001 407, +420 736 502 520, email: pavel.kaidl@orlenunipetrol.cz