SAO: Czech water quality hasn’t improved despite CZK 2.7bn in EU subsidies

The quality of Czech surface and groundwater has not improved despite the state having allocated 2.7 billion crowns in European Union funds from 2013 to 2020 towards monitoring supplies and modernizing treatment plants, the Supreme Audit Office (SAO) said on Monday.

In some cases, the level of pesticides and nitrogenous substances in drinking water sources has even increased, the office said in a news release. However, the Ministry of Agriculture has rejected the conclusions, spokesman Vojtěch Bílý told ČTK, arguing that they are distorted and drinking water quality remains at a high level.