Lycee Sainte-Cecile in Montoire, France

An illustrated chronicle of a Socrates-Comenius project

“Man and the environment –friends or foes?”

Secondary School no 13 in Lodz, Poland

The teachers in charge of the project

1. What we did in Poland before our visit to France

2. The Polish students in France 3. The French students in Poland 4. The cultural part of the project5. The field workshops the Polish students took

part in

1. What we did in Poland before our visit to France : - an ecological workshop in Łagiewnicki Forest

- a visit to The Institute for Nuclear Studies in Świerk

Ecological Education Centre in

Łagiewnicki Forest

In The Ecological Education Centre we condcuted some research into air pollution on the basis of the lichen scale.

The Charms of Łagiewnicki Forest

The lichens we observed

Lichens as bioindicators are often used to define the degree of environmental pollution.The students have observed tree-dwelling lichens (epiphytes), which occur on the bark of limetrees, oaks and pinetrees in different parts of our city and nearby. The observations

lasted 3 months.

W carried out observations of lichens in various districts of Łódź, including The Central District, Radogoszcz, Janów, Helenówek and Retkinia as well as suburban areas.On the basis of our observations, we prepared a lichen map of Łódź. We drew a conclusion that in the centre of Łodź the concentration of sulphur dioxide is the highest, which results from heavy traffic and burning of coal and household waste in household stoves. Therefore this area is a lichen desert.Although large housing estates where there are a lot of green areas are situated far from the city centre,the concentration of sulphur dioxide drops down only to 100 µg/m3. This is caused by the fact that most inhabitants use private cars to travel to the city centre.

The lichen map of Łódź

The Institute for Nuclear Studies in Świerk

The Polish students paid a visit to Świerk where a research pressurised water reactor is situated. We learned how a pressurized water reactor functions and how nuclear energy can be used.

While visiting the Institute

The Polish students in

2. The Polish students in France :- a visit to the water treatment plant in Montoire

- a visit to Saint-Laurent-des-Eaux nuclear power station - working on the project.

The water treatment plant in Montoire

This is how we prepared to visit it.

We learned how the water treatment plant works.

Here are the stages:The first stage: pumping The second stage: screeningThe third stage: de-oiling and de-sandingThe fourth stage: biological treatmentThe fifth stage: clarificationThe sixth stage: dehydration of mud

Saint-Laurent-des-Eaux Nuclear Power Plant

While in France, we visited Saint-Laurent-des-Eaux Nuclear Power Plant, situated on the River Loire between the towns of Orleans and Blois. The NPP produces about 2.7% of total national electricity generation.

Visiting the nuclear power plant

The chimneys of the nuclear power plant

Working on the project

While staying in France, we attended a few lectures connected with the environment, e.g.: about the domestic water cycle in Montoire, renewable energy, air and water pollution.

Group work

The students were divided into a few groups in which they worked on various topics.

Then they gave short presentations and discussed their posters.

3. The French students in Poland: - working on the project - a visit to Heat and Power Plant No 4 in Łódź - both groups in Łagiewnicki Forest

The French students in Poland

During the visit of the French students to Poland, the participants of the project took part in numerous lectures connected with the environment and its protection. They prepared posters and short presentations on the basis of their research.

A visit to the Heat and Power Plant No 4 in Łódź

The latest technology made it possible to protect the vegetation and the air by: - limiting dust emissions - limiting sulphur dioxide emissions - limiting nitrous oxides emissions  

Both groups in Łagiewnicki

Forest

We also walked along the “educational path”, getting familiar with various wildlife species and paying particular attention to the protected ones.

In the Ecological Education Centre in Łagiewniki we participated in a lecture “Łagiewnicki Forest as the lungs of Łódź”.

Presentation of the posters

4. The cultural part of the project: - a visit to Chenonceau Castle - Montoire – a radio programme - sightseeing in Łódź - Polish lessons - dancing lessons – traditional Polish dances - a visit to the Opera in Łódź

Chenonceau Castle

This castle is one of the most beautiful castles on the Loire.

During the visit we collected samples of water which we later tested in order to determine the properties of the water.

Views of the castle from the gardens

of Diana de Poitiers

A radio programme

The Polish group prepared a programme about Poland in French, which was presented on the local radio.

Łódź

During their visit to Łódź, we showed the French students the most interesting places in our city:

Radegast Railway Station

Księży Młyn Estate

The Textile Museum, called The White Factory

Israel Poznański’s Palace, which houses The History of Łódź Museum

The Cathedral

The Old Cemetery with the Scheiblers’ family vault

The French teachers and students during the Polish lessons

Learning how to dance the Polish dances

A visit to the Grand Theatre, where we saw a French-language

version of G.Bizet’s “Carmen”.

5. The field workshops the Polish students took part in:- a workshop in Kampinoski National Park- a visit to Załęczański Landscape Park- a visit to Bełchatów Lignite Mine- a visit to the Botanical Garden in Łódź

- natural features of historic importance

- national parks

There are various forms of nature conservation, for example:

- landscape parks

- nature reserves

A workshop in Kampinoski National Park

A national park is a place of outstanding natural beauty as well as of extraordinary historical, scientific, cultural and educational interest, covering the area of at least 1000 ha. All the nature and landscape features are protected there.Kampinoski National Park is situated between Łódź and Warsaw, along the Vistula river basin.

We learned about the protected plants which we

later looked for while walking along the

“educational path’.

We visited the Museum of Nature where we saw the

stuffed specimens of animals living in the Park.

Załęczański Landscape Park

Landscape parks protect an area’s wildlife while allowing the local people to undertake tourist activity. The Park authorities run educational classes to raise young people’s awareness of the necessity to protect the natural environment.

A visit to the Botanical Garden in Łódź

While there, we learned how the mining activities influence the natural environment and what measures are taken to eliminate or minimize the negative impact.

A visit to Bełchatów Lignite Mine.

In order to reduce the negative influence of the mining activities on the environment,

a lot of pro-ecological measures are taken.