Polish Parliament to Review Draft Law Protecting Racetracks from Noise Shutdowns

Six months after Tor Poznan was shut down by an environmental inspection order, a new legislative proposal aimed at resolving noise limit conflicts has reached the Polish Sejm. The closure highlighted an absence of legal frameworks allowing racing venues to operate and host competitions without the risk of immediate suspension due to general noise regulations.

Early efforts to address the issue focused on amending the Sports Act to exclude specific sporting venues from general noise thresholds. While the Senate attempted to include racetracks in autumn 2025, the Sejm rejected the amendment. A subsequent attempt in August was blocked by the Ministry of Climate and Environment, which proposed modifications to the Environmental Protection Law instead, resulting in a four-month delay.

Joint parliamentary committees on Physical Culture, Sport and Tourism, alongside Environmental Protection, Natural Resources and Forestry, have now approved the revised draft bill. Rather than providing a blanket exemption for motorsport venues, the new proposal allows local environmental authorities to account for the unique operational nature of sporting venues. It also grants authorities the legal power to issue temporary noise exemptions, specifically during organised competitions.

Under previous rules, enforcement agencies were required to treat permanent racing circuits under the same criteria as round-the-clock industrial plants. The proposed amendments align Poland closer to frameworks implemented elsewhere in Europe, though the bill still requires plenary votes in the Sejm, Senate review, and the presidential signature.

Even if adopted, the compromise measure relies on temporary permissions and local authority discretion, offering partial protection rather than the sweeping exemptions sought by motorsport organisations.