“We are delighted that together with ornithologists from rescue and rehabilitation centres, we can help about 30 eagles and peregrine falcons with an unhappy fate. Thanks to their professional help, these raptors can, in many cases, fully recover and even be released back into the wild,” says Lucie Pražáková, Director of the ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation, about the Foundation’s support of the Czech Union for Nature Conservation.

In April last year, the Huslík rehabilitation centre admitted a female sea eagle who suffered a bleeding necrotic injury on her talon after being hit by a powerline. The injured and exhausted bird could not fly and had to rely on feeding from the male who watched her. 

The injured female was taken care of by ornithologists from the Pasíčka rescue station in Bor u Skutče, which has a sufficiently large aviary and whose mission is to rescue animals from the wild in the Pardubice Region and to implement environmental education programs for children, youth and adults. After ten months of intensive care, ornithologists were able to release the fully recovered female back into the wild. With the help of special GPS, the fate of the eagle can be further monitored. She is now moving close to the place where she was found injured - in the vicinity of the Žehušická Game Reserve. This protected natural monument is located in the Kutná hora district and is known for its unique breeding of white deer.

“As part of our activities, we implement many programmes, including expert activities and scientific work, as well as preventive, awareness-raising, and educational campaigns. We are pleased to launch this new collaboration with the ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation, which supports the treatment of eagles and peregrine falcons in our rescue and rehabilitation centres,” says Petr Stýblo, Director of the Czech Union for Nature Conservation. He adds: “If possible, we endeavour to release the treated and fully recovered wild animals from our rescue and rehabilitation centres back into the wild.”

The ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation launched cooperation with the Czech Union for Nature Conservation this winter. The Union is the largest non-governmental, non-profit organisation focused on nature and landscape conservation in the Czech Republic. Its mission is to protect and restore the natural heritage, provide environmental education, and support sustainable life. Within this cooperation, the ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation also supports aid to injured eagles and peregrines taken in the rescue and rehabilitation centres associated within the Union.

The ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation and ALKA Wildlife also support the nesting of the critically endangered peregrine falcons on chimney stacks located on the production premises of the ORLEN Unipetrol Group. Peregrine families have already raised 58 chicks there. This year, peregrine falcons have raised nine chicks on the chimney stacks at Litvínov and Kralupy nad Vltavou plants and at Paramo in Pardubice. 

The ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation launched its activities in 2017. Its main mission is to support education and popularise science, primarily natural and technical sciences. It also focuses on corporate social responsibility with an emphasis on supporting local communities and the environment. The Foundation has been supporting schools, educators, and students with grant programmes. The ‘Plastík a jeho kouzelný kufřík’ project provides schoolchildren from the first to the fifth grade with an excursion into the world of chemistry through entertaining experiments. The Foundation’s educational support and activities resulted in many educational videos and tutorials available to the general public on www.nouonline.cz. Since 2024, the Foundation has been engaged in corporate social responsibility related to environmental protection, support of local communities, and volunteering. These activities include charity collections, stocking rivers with fish, supporting the nesting of endangered peregrine falcons, and beekeeping. The Foundation has long cooperated with many non-profit organisations. Also, it often reacts to current events in society and emergencies. Additional information about the ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation’s mission and other activities is available at www.nadaceorlenunipetrol.cz.

Lucie Pražáková, director of the ORLEN Unipetrol Foundation

E-mail: nadace@orlenunipetrol.cz 

Telephone: +420 736 506 939