Opolno-Zdrój, 2022
The circle closes
If the lignite deposit is exploited to the maximum, along with the church near the road to Bogatynia, there will be only a few houses left. The local history of coal mining might thus be closed. The Duke of Einsiedel, the former owner of the castle in Rybarzowice (Reibersdorf) and the local estate, was one of the first to make a fortune from coal mining in the 19th century. Neither he nor Gottlieb Apelt of Oppelsdorf probably knew what a Pandora’s box they had opened by establishing the mining business. Rybarzowice (Reibersdorf), the home of Einsiedel, gave way to the mine in 2000, while the home of Apelt is awaiting its fate.
The north-western edge of Opolno, towards the mining pit, is now just abandoned gardens and orchards.
