Spatial and functional dimensions of the COVID-19 epidemic in Poland

The COVID-19 epidemic appeared in Poland in early March 2020. Since then, the epidemic has impacted strongly on the socioeconomic nature of the country. Since April 2020, the region with the most confirmed cases is the province of Silesia (slaskie). This paper has two main aims. First, the authors focus on explanations for the causes of the large number of confirmed cases in this region. The second issue is the mosaic pattern of COVID-19 cases in slaskie province. The paper explains these patterns with reference to urban shrinkage, trans-industrialism, hard coal mining and polycentricity. The impact of these drivers is clearly visible in the local patterning of the pandemic. The authors point out that this specific relationship in this province complicates regional and local policy and indirectly affects state policy focused on the epidemic as well. The key problem is the negative impact of COVID-19 on hard coal mining. This sector, in turn, is considered by the Polish government as one of the most important from an economic and political point of view.