The Role of the Regulator in the Water Management in the Czech Republic – Case Study of a Large Remediation Project

Abstract

In the Czech Republic the universal objective of the national water management policy is to create conditions for sustainable management of the finite water resources. This implies that all forms of water resource use should be in compliance with water and aquatic ecosystem protection requirements while applying measures to reduce the harmful effects of contaminated water. The key principles of the water management policy are derived from the EU Water Framework Directive, other water management directives and the renewed EU Sustainable Development Strategy. The Water Protection Department of the Ministry of the Environment is the central water management authority. The Czech Republic also pays a big attention to environmental damages mostly on ground water aquifers created before privatization of industry, also partly of agriculture production and after Soviet Army stay (1968–1991). A case study of remediation of a large-scale petroleum contamination of soil and groundwater at the former Soviet Army air base at Hradcany is reported. The air base and its vicinity are part of the sedimentary complex of the Bohemian Cretaceous Basin, which is a significant groundwater supply source for the Czech Republic. The site served as an army air base from World War II to 1992 and a large contamination plume – 28 ha 7,000 metric ton of petroleum products release –had to be remediated between 1997 and 2010.