Středočeské vodárny supplies drinking water in part of the Central Bohemian Region, among other sources from the Odolena Voda reservoir. It publishes information on water quality on its website, together with the results of analyses.
On 24 September 2026 the utility announced that water from the Odolena Voda reservoir could not be used for drinking or cooking, because sampling had shown lead concentrations above the limit. According to the Czech News Agency, the restriction affected 12 municipalities and roughly 15,000 residents. The utility arranged a replacement supply of drinking water by tanker trucks. The excess values were found in the Řepínský důl abstraction area, where 16 of 36 inspected wells exceeded the limit and 14 of them were shut down by the utility. The lost output was replaced with water from a neighbouring well field. The utility advised that, for long-unused sections of household piping, people should let the water run for five to ten minutes before drinking or cooking. [4] On 2 October 2026 the crisis staff of Středočeské vodárny declared the water from the Odolena Voda reservoir potable again, because repeated analyses confirmed that the lead content meets the hygiene limits. [3]
Because of the contamination, the utility filed a criminal complaint against an unknown perpetrator and turned to the Česká inspekce životního prostředí. As one possible source it named the nearby former Kasova Rokle landfill. The police are investigating the case on suspicion of negligent damage to and endangerment of the environment. [5] On 2 October 2026 a link between the landfill and the contamination had not been confirmed. [5]
Sources
- ČTK / České noviny
- ČT24
- Novinky.cz — 2 October 2026
- ČT24 — 2 October 2026
- Ekolist.cz — 2 October 2026