Łukasz Fiedeń

Transport activities are a significant factor in environmental pollution, especially in cities. Therefore, measures aimed at electrification of public transport are particularly important. The aim of the paper is to present the origins, status and development dynamics of electromobility in Polish cities, especially the second generation of electromobility, i.e. vehicles that do not require continuous connection to the energy source. In practice the second-generation electric vehicles can be identified with battery-powered vehicles, hydrogen and hybrid vehicles. The study was prepared on the basis of an analysis of literature, industry documents or development strategies. In addition, a database of information on zero- and low-emission vehicles in public transport (i.e. electric and hybrid buses) was compiled to analyse the phenomenon. The study shows that the implementation of electromobility in Poland has already emerged from the initial phase. The possibilities for developing battery technology vary in cities of different sizes. In 2021 in Poland, the share of low-emission buses in the public transport fleet was several times higher than that of electric vehicles among passenger vehicles. It is most likely that the Polish road to electromobility leads primarily through public transport. The following factors influencing the development of electromobility were identified: these were primarily EU and Polish legislation and regulations, the presence of manufacturers of rolling stock and electrotechnical equipment, and – at the local scale – organisational, economic and social issues.

The National Scientific Conference of Young Researchers (OKNMB) Contemporary problems and research directions in geography has for 10 years been a meeting place for young researchers undertaking geographical research. The main objective of the conference is to present the research results of Ph.D.s, postgraduates, and students dealing with issues in geography, spatial management, and related fields. The idea behind the organisation of the first conference was to create a space for the youngest geographers to present their research results to a wider audience, providing an opportunity for constructive criticism that improves the quality of science. The 10-year history of the National Scientific Conference of Young Researchers proves that this premise has been and continues to be fulfilled. Various organisational aspects of the event have changed over the years, but the main assumptions are still the same. Although, for decade, it has been a predominantly doctoral conference, in the coming years an increasing proportion of students will be observed among the participants and the role of OKNMB as a venue for the conference debut will be even greater.

By definition, a flood is a natural event with social and economic consequences. These effects can be both direct and immediate as flood losses, as well as indirect and long-lasting, influencing local community’s perception of the geographical environment they live in and of possible local disasters. Flash floods in mountainous areas constitute a particular type of hazard. They appear when intense rainfall over a small area causes violent and destructive flooding. Such an event occurred on July 5th, 2012 in the upper Kaczawa catchment when heavy rainfall formed sudden overflowing in small river and stream catchments in the town of Wojcieszów (Złotoryja county, Dolnośląskie voivodship in Poland). Precipitation was characterized by a very high intensity up to 69 mm·h–1 with the daily sum reaching 94 mm. Such high rainfall occurred on a very small area stretching 25 km in length and 10–12 km in width. It caused a very rapid concentration of flood wave with the culmination reached within 30–40 min. after the most intense precipitation. The flow of Kaczawa river in Świerzawa reached 115 m3·s–1 (qmax = 0,86 m3·s–1·km2), though it did not stand out from historic floods in this catchment. Much higher specific discharges were measured for the Kaczawa catchment in Wojcieszów Dolny (1.95 m3·s–1·km2) and for the Olszanka catchment (2.06 m3·s–1·km2). The overflow of water in smaller catchments was catastrophic and caused considerable damage. The main aim of the paper is to analyse the social memory of the 2012 flash flood in Wojcieszów several years after its occurrence. The research included mental sketch mapping of flooded areas conducted two and four years after the flood happened and an analysis of flood recordings available on the YouTube video-sharing website. The findings show that, despite being surprised by the sudden flood that hit their town, memories about that event are slowly fading away. With time passing by, flood witnesses tend to mark a progressively smaller than actual area covered by flood waters. They are not likely to watch historic flood recordings on YouTube either. The authors believe that the decline of social memories of the flood may translate into lower hazard awareness resulting in inadequate preparedness for a possible future flood.

Research on the spatial distribution of high technology industries has been the subject of geographers’ studies for a long time. However, in recent years there has been a lack of analyses in Poland which would allow to determine the spatio-temporal variability of advanced economic activities and to verify the determinants of their occurrence. On the basis of GUS data and variables describing transport accessibility, principal component and regression analyses were carried out to identify the location factors of the high-tech industry at the local (commune) level. It is still significantly concentrated in the areas of large cities. Nevertheless, the number of enterprises of the analysed industries in suburban areas increases significantly, which indicates the processes of economic suburbanisation of advanced economic activities. Unfortunately, apart from historically shaped centre of the high technology industry and limited number of new centres, the analysed industries do not develop in medium and small towns and their surroundings. Due to strong emigration, underdeveloped human capital and insufficient transport accessibility, high technology industries have so far generally not appeared in non-metropolitan areas, too. The analysed high-tech industries are concentrated in areas with high values of the entrepreneurship index, high living standards and relatively good transport accessibility. The key variable determining the development of the analysed industries is the situation on the labour market, both in terms of the level of professional activity of the population, the sought-after qualifications of the staff, as well as the level of inter-firm mobility of the staff.