ČSOP, Povodí Vltavy and the Český rybářský svaz announced a clean-up of rubbish exposed by the lowered level of the Slapy Reservoir, to be held from 28 October to 1 November 2026.
The lowering of the water level of the Slapy Reservoir due to long-term drought exposed a large amount of rubbish on its shores. The Český svaz ochránců přírody (ČSOP), the state enterprise Povodí Vltavy and the Český rybářský svaz therefore announced a joint event called Ukliďme Slapy. The clean-up of the worst affected places is to take place during the autumn school holidays from 28 October to 1 November 2026. The public may also take part.
The event is coordinated by ČSOP, which handles the registration of volunteers and the supply of rubbish bags. Povodí Vltavy will remove and dispose of the collected waste in an environmentally sound way. Those interested are to sign up in advance on the website csop.cz/uklidme-slapy and will receive instructions in a confirmation e-mail on where to pick up the bags and where to take them. The number of people in each section is limited. The exact drop-off points for the bags are not published widely, in order to prevent illegal dumps.
Eliška Prouzová of ČSOP said: "For more than a month, volunteers have been helping on the muddy shores of Slapy to rescue freshwater mussels, and the sight of the exposed rubbish is dismal." The rescue of mussels threatened by drought on the shores continues (see Rescue of mussels on the Slapy Reservoir). The director general of Povodí Vltavy, Petr Kubala, said that the lowering of the water level, which the enterprise undertook because of the unfavourable hydrological situation, made it possible to clean places that are otherwise permanently under water. Pavel Vrána of the Český rybářský svaz said that the union's members have taken part in the rescue work from the start.
According to Pražský deník, the level of the Slapy Reservoir fell from 269.3 metres above sea level to 262.3 metres. Since 4 September 2026, Povodí Vltavy has been using the water stored in Slapy to maintain the necessary flow of the Vltava in Prague.
Chronology
- — The Czech Union of Nature Conservationists (Český svaz ochránců přírody), the state enterprise Povodí Vltavy and the Czech Fishing Union (Český rybářský svaz) announced a clean-up of waste exposed on the shores of Slapy Reservoir after its level was lowered because of drought; it is scheduled for 28 October to 1 November 2026. Ekolist.cz Pražský deník
Sources
- Ekolist.cz — 19 October 2026
- Pražský deník — 19 October 2026