Wieliczka County

Wieliczka County (Polish: powiat wielicki) is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, southern Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 1998. Its administrative seat and largest town is Wieliczka, which lies 13 kilometres (8 mi) south-east of the regional capital Kraków. The only other town in the county is Niepołomice, lying 12 km (7 mi) north-east of Wieliczka.

The county covers an area of 427.8 square kilometres (165.2 sq mi). As of 2006 its total population is 105,266, out of which the population of Wieliczka is 19,133, that of Niepołomice is 8,537, and the rural population is 77,596.

Neighbouring counties

Wieliczka County is bordered by Bochnia County to the east, Myślenice County to the south, and the city of Kraków and Kraków County to the north-west.

Administrative division

The county is subdivided into five gminas (two urban-rural and three rural). These are listed in the following table, in descending order of population.

Wieliczka

Wieliczka [vʲɛˈlʲit͡ʂka] is a town (2006 population: 19,128) in southern Poland in the Kraków metropolitan area, and situated (since 1999) in Lesser Poland Voivodeship; previously, it was in Kraków Voivodeship (1975–1998). The town was founded in 1290 by Duke Premislas II of Poland.

Geographic location

The city of Wieliczka lies in the south central part of Poland, within the Małopolska region, in the Kraków area. The city is located 13 km (8.1 mi) to the southeast of Kraków. Under the town is the Wieliczka Salt Mine – one of the world's oldest operating salt mines (the oldest is at Bochnia, Poland, 20 km (12 mi) from Wieliczka), which has been in operation since prehistoric times.

The town lies in a valley between two ridges that stretch from west to east: south Wieliczka foothills, north Bogucice sands, including the Wieliczka-Gdów Upland. The south ridge is higher, while the northern ridge leads to national road 94. Near the town lies the A4 highway (E40 European route), which in the near future will connect Kraków to Ukraine. Despite the small area, the city's relative altitude accounts for more than 137 –m–: the highest mountain reaches 361,8 metres above the sea, and the lowest point lies at an altitude of 224 metres above sea level.