Use of water

1. Enough clean water for everyone

1.1 The prevention of water pollution

•  Illegally discharged waste water from households, commerce and services, but also from the industry or leakage from environmental burdens and agricultural activity, significantlypollute surface and ground water. Strengthening and streamlining of controls, documentation of legal waste water disposal and a threat of real effective sanctions will help limit these actions.

1.3. Elimination of adverse impacts on water courses

•  In terms of the impact on water status, there are three main groups of significant hydromorphological changes: a disruption of longitudinal connection of the rivers and the habitats, a disruption of transverse connection of wetlands and inundation with sewer and other morphological changes and hydrological changes. It is therefore essential to focus on the revitalization and re-naturalization of water courses and the adjacent riverine landscapes and to ensure the coherence of water courses, which is one of the basic conditions for the functioning of river ecosystems.
•  The prioritization of renewal of land improvement channels will be set, depending on their function and use. Land improvement channels can also drain water from areas, where it is necessary. For this reason, it will be important to assess where the operation and maintenance of channels is needed and where it is environmentally harmful.

Orientation, Principles and Priorities of the Slovak Republic Water Management  Policy by 2027 (2016)

3. PRINCIPLES AND PRIORITIES OF THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC WATER MANAGEMENT POLICY BY 2027 AND FRAMEWORK PROCEDURES IN ACHIEVING THE OBJECTIVES:
Priorities of water management
In order to ensure the efficient use of water resources:

• Ensure fair and sustainable use of water resources;

• Ensure that water resource management was in line with environmental ethic based on balancing the resources and needs of water, or water accounting in a river basin, which at the same time has a direct link also to addressing the water scarcity problem.
• Based on the indicators of water scarcity, to determine the manner of efficient use of water for water-exploiting industries, especially for industry and energy, agriculture and households;
• Identify alternative sources of groundwater. These resources should be of good quality properties, long residence time and low vulnerability. Where there are not enough good-quality groundwater resources, it is necessary to look for alternative solutions within the surface waters, for example through water supply of available water systems;

Environmental target for surface water bodies is to perform measures aimed at:

• Preventing deterioration of the condition of surface water bodies;
• Protection, improvement and renewal of surface water bodies so that the good condition of surface water is achieved until 22 December 2015 and 2021, respectively;
• Protection and improvement of artificial and considerably changed surface water bodies so that the good ecological potential and good chemical condition are achieved until 22 December 2015 and 2021, respectively;
• Gradual decreasing in pollution by priority substances and stopping or gradual termination of emissions, discharge and leakages of priority dangerous substances.

 
Environmental target for underground water bodies is to perform measures aimed at:

• Preventing or limiting entry of pollutants into underground water and at preventing deterioration of the condition of underground water bodies;
• Protection, improvement and renewal of underground water bodies and at ensuring the balance between underground water takings and completing their quantity in order to achieve the good condition of underground water until 22 December 2015 and 2021, respectively;
• Reversing the important increasing trend of the pollutant concentration that is caused by human activities in order to decrease the underground water pollution gradually.

SR Government´s Statement of policy the for the period 2021 - 2024 (2021)

•  propose a water policy to ensure the gradual restoration of damaged water bodies, to stop water pollution, to stop the decline in the quantity of groundwater, and to ensure the sufficiency of drinking water in the regions, 

The Slovak Republic Strategy for Adaptation to Adverse Effects of Climate Change- Update (2018)

1. Strategy Goals

The main goal of the updated the Slovak Republic Strategy for Adaptation to Adverse Effects of Climate Change is to prepare Slovakia for tackling the adverse effects of climate change, deliver comprehensive information about the current state of adaptation processes in Slovakia, and based on their analysis establish an institutional framework for a coordinating mechanism which will ensure effective implementation of adaptation measures across all levels and in all areas, as well as improve general awareness of the domain.
 
5. Impact of climate change on select areas and recommended adaptation measures
 
5.4. Water regime and water management
 
Adaptation measures in local conditions should aim at compensating for the instances of drought, that is, the decrease of flows of water and water yields, as well as minimising the negative consequences of floods, especially flash floods in montane and submontane regions. Climate change adaptation within the domain of water management should be oriented towards implementing measures which will create the conditions for better water outflow management in catchment areas. In the domain of water management elements of green and blue infrastructure, green structural approaches and non-structural adaptation concepts should be prioritised over elements of grey infrastructure whenever it is technically possible and efficient to do so. Adaptation measures should focus on preserving or improving the current state of water, with the aim of achieving its good state, efficient and sustainable utilisation of water resources, protection against floods and contribution towards protection of nature and land and support with ecosystem services provision. It is important to create space for a wider application of so-called "green" measures in catchment areas where the main goal is to increase the land's adaptability through regeneration and improvement of efficiency of ecosystem functions of the land. "Green" measures are recognised as the better environmental choice, that is, as supplementary-mitigating measures with the aim of minimising the consequences of grey infrastructure, assuming that they are equally effective or more effective in regards to set goals.
Water is becoming a critical strategic stock of the state and it is necessary to protect it and manage its rational and efficient use in line with the goal of ensuring sustainable development. Justifiably, the highest priority is given to water sources, their protection and the need of their more efficient use.

Proposed adaptation measures
-slowing down of water outflow from catchment areas
-decreasing of the maximum flow of floods
-risk assessment
-water management
-general

The Protocol on Water and Health - to the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes, 1992 - National objectives of SR III (2014)

The reason for the Protocol´s objectives update in 2014 is their fulfilment, or the need of extending the deadlines for the fulfilment of objectives which are still actual, as well as determining new national objectives conditioned by the situation change and the occurrence of new problems to which the attention must be paid, and which seem to be important in terms of Protocol´s objectives implementation in SR. SR has defined the national objectives already for the third time since the Protocol entered into force.

National objectives of SR III

National objective no.11: Increasing public awareness of water and aquatic ecosystems protection and educational activities
Date of fulfilment: y. 2020

National objective no. 12: Strengthening the protection of water resources
Date of fulfilment: y. 2015 – 2020