“A special law on the revitalisation of the Oder, which will include the modernisation, expansion and construction of new sewage treatment plants, will be adopted by the government within two months”, announced Deputy Infrastructure Minister Marek Gróbarczyk.

“During the Cabinet meeting, I presented the assumptions for a special law on the revitalisation of the Odra River, which, first and foremost, is aimed at quick intervention so that the resources as well as the quality of water will be guaranteed to prevent the situation we have to face today. Why a special law? Because it must be done very quickly”, said Deputy Minister Gróbarczyk.

The main assumptions of the special law on the revitalisation of the Odra River include faster investment procedures, increased water resources and better monitoring, as well as compensation for affected people.

Minister pointed out that the Act will operate in three environmental, infrastructural and biological areas. “The environmental area is linked to the infrastructural one, as it primarily involves the modernisation, construction of new sewage treatment plants or expansion of the existing facilities”, adds the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure.

Marek Gróbarczyk stressed that there is an extreme situation this year, which has never been recorded since measurements have been taken. As he explained, the flows on the Odra have dropped from 150 to 50 cubic metres per minute. This has an impact on the very low level of the Odra and causes adverse phenomena in the aquatic environment.

As Deputy Minister Gróbarczyk pointed out, the construction of treatment plants included in the special law is not a new issue. The Ministry of Infrastructure and, above all, the Polish Water Authority (Wody Polskie) are responsible for preparing the national programme for municipal wastewater treatment, and this programme is updated every few years.

Adrian Andrzejewski