Construction of the new Polish Antarctic Station on King George Island is underway. The 500 tonnes groundworks for the new building of the Henryk Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station are completed. The station is due to be operational in 2025.

The Polish Antarctic Station named after Henryk Arctowski is one of 40 year-round Antarctic stations. It is located in the South Shetland Islands, on King George Island, and began operations in 1977. Then it was located a dozen metres from the shore; now, with the high-water levels, it is less than a metre. Therefore, the new main station building is being erected further from the shore and will be elevated 3 metres above ground level. The PLN 88 million for the modernisation and construction of the new building was provided by the Ministry of Science in 2018.

Contractors have managed to lay the groundwork for the new station building. They are formed by 30 blocks made up of two parts, each weighing 8-9 tonnes. The blocks were flown in from Poland and their division was dictated by the load capacity of the transport amphibious vehicles. In total, the station foundations weigh more than 500 tonnes. Work on site is hampered by the short season – it is currently winter in the southern hemisphere, lasting about eight months in Antarctica.

A state-of-the-art biological wastewater treatment plant will be built in the coming season. The water will be treated with UV lamps so that the water flowing out of the treatment plant is biologically dead and there is no introduction of alien species, such as bacteria, into the environment. There will also be a plumbing system, water pumping and new fuel tanks.

The project also includes the reconstruction of the energy system. Until now, electricity was supplied only by diesel generators; now a hybrid system is being installed. Soon, electricity will be supplied first by photovoltaic panels, followed by a new type of diesel generator. Energy storage facilities will also be built to store surplus energy.

Arkadiusz Słomczyński