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Ústí nad Labem Region
The Ústí nad Labem Region may be called a region of opportunities, with a potential still
waiting for full development. After a decade of one-sided orientation towards mining and the
power industry, which dominated the Region from the early 1990s, and a later slowdown of
industrial activities, the Region is now working systematically on the improvement of the
environment, the revitalisation of vast areas and also on the transformation of the
educational structure of the population.
Location, Territorial Division, Population
The Ústí nad Labem Region is situated in the south-western part of the Czech Republic and
its northern border is simultaneously the country’s boundary with the Federal Republic of
Germany. Along the border with Germany, the Region is enclosed by a mountain range
formed by the Ore Mountains, the Elbe Sandstone Ridge and the Lužice Mountains. Most of
the Ústí nad Labem Region falls into the Elbe River basin. It covers an area of 5 335 sq. km
and accounts for 6.8% of the total surface area of the Czech Republic. 30% of the surface is
forest and 2% is water surface. The Ústí nad Labem Region is divided into seven districts –
NUTS 4 (Děčín, Chomutov, Litoměřice, Louny, Most, Teplice and Ústí nad Labem), with 354
communities, 57 of which have the status of town. The regional centre is the city of Ústí nad
Labem with a population of 97 000. In terms of the number of inhabitants, the Region ranks
fifth in the Czech Republic. The density of the population in the Region is higher than the
national average and differs from district to district. Most densely populated is the area of the
brown coal basin in the foothills of the Ore Mountains. Less populated are areas in the Ore
Mountains and the Louny and Litoměřice districts, with scattered villages and settlements.
Power Industry, Engineering and Chemical Industry
The economic significance of the Region is historically given by its considerable mineral
resources, especially vast brown coal deposits lying at a shallow depth under the surface.
The brown coal basin lies below the slopes of the Ore Mountains, extending from Ústí nad
Labem to Kadaň. Other important raw materials extracted in the Region are high quality
glass and foundry sands and building stone. The area with a highly developed industrial
production is concentrated in the foothills of the Ore Mountains (districts of Chomutov, Most,
Teplice and, partly, Ústí nad Labem). Among the sectors, the most important position is held
by the power industry, coal mining, engineering and the chemical and glass industries. The
Litoměřice and Louny districts are areas known for hops production and vegetable growing.
The Elbe and Ohře basins are renowned fruit-growing areas, called the Bohemian Garden.
Much reputed are vines grown in the Litoměřice district. The Most area, too, where vineyards
have been set up on land re-cultivated after brown coal quarrying was suspended there, is
now becoming known for its wines. The environment in the border districts of the present-day
Ústí nad Labem Region has improved significantly. The coal-fired power stations have been
de-sulphurised and, thanks to the new sewage plants, the Elbe has become a relatively pure
river, while chemical plants, which in the past polluted the environment, are being phased
out. Environmental criteria, which meet EU standards, are determining factors for further
industrial production.
Economic Characteristics and Employment
In 2007, the Region accounted for 6.5% of the Czech Republic’s gross domestic product. In
terms of the per capita ratio, this is 80.7% of the national average, placing the Region in
twelfth position among the country’s fourteen regions. At the end of 2007, there were
362 000 people employed in the Region, most of whom worked in the manufacturing industry
(28.3%). Average monthly wages in the Region amounted to CZK 19 583.- (EUR 736).
Nearly 172 000 companies, organisations and businesses were registered in the Region.
The largest group are businessmen – individual persons not entered in the Company
Register (nearly 71%). According to the branch classification of economic activities, most
entities were engaged in trading and the repair of motor vehicles and consumer goods. As a
result of the decline in coal production, enterprise restructuring and cutting down industrial
and agricultural production, the unemployment rate in the Ústí nad Labem Region (10.96%)
is the highest in comparison with the national average on a long-term basis. Current efforts
are to create conditions for investors to be able to help enrich the production structure in
North Bohemia and significantly reduce unemployment with their business plans and
environmentally friendly production.
Link between the North and South of Europe
The Region’s geographical position, with its affinity with the EU, plays an important role in
transport. An international highway, the E 55, which passes through the Teplice and
Litoměřice districts and links up with the D 8 motorway at Lovosice, forms a connection
between the North and South of Europe. A new section of the D 8 motorway, passing
through the Ore Mountains and linking up with the German A 17 motorway, was put into
operation at the end of 2006. Another important roadway runs from the Karlovy Vary Region,
past the Ore Mountains, to the northern part of the Liberec Region (I/13). Road I/7, running
from the Federal Republic of Germany to Prague via Chomutov and Louny, is also important.
The main railway line passing through the Region is the international railway running from
the Federal Republic of Germany via Ústí nad Labem to Prague. The Elbe is the most
important waterway in the Czech Republic, being used to carry cargo to the port of Hamburg
in the North Sea. There are 14 road customs crossing points, 3 railway and one river
crossing point and many new crossing points for pedestrians and cyclists in the Region’s
territory.
Education
The need for industrial and service restructuring has called for new skills and specialisations
of the population. This is the task for the Region’s 122 secondary schools and universities:
Jan Evangelista Purkyně University (www.ujep.cz) in Ústí nad Labem, a faculty of the Czech
Technical University in Děčín and the newly established Institute of Finance and
Administration in Most (www.vsfs.cz). Their contacts with partners in neighbouring Saxony
may open up new means of economic and cultural cooperation for future generations of the
two regions.
Culture, Tourism
Visitors to the Region have an opportunity of seeing interesting exhibitions arranged by its
museums and galleries, often displaying unique objects, such as the skull of Queen Judith of
Bohemia (12th century) in the Regional Museum in Teplice, an important collection of Gothic
Art in the District Museum in Chomutov, a large collection of historical herbariums in the
District Museum in Litoměřice and a unique collection of paintings by Antonín Slavíček in the
Modern Arts Gallery in Roudnice nad Labem. The Museum in Děčín outlines the Region’s
history, its art history, archaeology and art photography and specialises in collecting
documents depicting the history of the Elbe River navigation.
Natural Resources
The Ústí nad Labem Region has an immense wealth of scenic beauty. It has the Ore
Mountains, the Central Bohemian Uplands, the Lužické Hory Mountains, the interesting Tisá
Walls rock formations, Bohemian-Saxonian Switzerland (www.ceskehory.cz) and the
charming Elbe waterway. It has an abundance of curative springs (Teplice, Bílina spas) and
historical sights, castles and chateaux in its territory. The best-known are, for example, the
Baroque chateau in Duchcov (www.duchcov.cz/zamek/), the Roman rotunda on Říp
Mountain, the Gothic church in Most, monasteries in Osek and Doksany and chateaux in
Ploskovice and Libochovice (www.zamky-hrady.cz).
Brief characteristics of the Region
NUTS
Area (sq.
km)
Population
Municipalities
Population
density
(persons/sq.
km)
LAU 1
– Děčín
909
135 767
52
149
LAU 1
– Chomutov
935
126 311
44
135
LAU 1
– Litoměřice
1 032
118 313
105
115
LAU 1
– Louny
1 118
87 083
70
78
LAU 1
– Most
467
116 770
26
250
LAU 1
– Teplice
469
129 873
34
277
LAU 1
– Ústí nad Labem
404
120 919
23
299
NUTS 3 – Ústí nad Labem
Region
5 335
835 036
354
156
NUTS 1 – Czech Republic
78 867
10 381 130
6 249
132
Source: Czech Statistical Office (3rd quarter 2008)
NUTS – EU nomenclature of units for territorial statistics
LAU 1 = district
Krajský úřad
(Regional Office)
Velká Hradební 3118/48
400 02 Ústí nad Labem
Czech Republic
Phone : +420 475 657 111
Fax:: +420 475 200 245
e-mail: [email protected]
www.kr-ustecky.cz