According to the green Ombudsman, the dam planned on the Drava river is unacceptable, excessive drainage of inland waters may lead to droughts

On the occasion of World Water Day, Ombudsman for Future Generations Marcel Szabó called attention to the preservation of the unspoiled, wild water status of the Drava river, and to the importance of the more rational use of rainwater in agriculture.

Ecologically speaking, the Drava is one of the healthiest rivers in Europe, its entire Hungarian section is under nature protection. The river's stretch between Őrtilos and Barcs is still unspoiled; the diverse habitats along its shingle banks, shoals, side-branches and alluvial forests provide home to rare species of plants, birds, fish and invertebrates. This cohabitation is a priceless natural asset, its preservation for the generations to come is a constitutional responsibility of Hungary. In the case of the Drava, we can speak about the complex protection of forests, water resources and biological diversity specified in Article P of the Fundamental Law.

The construction of hydro-electric power stations and dredging pose the biggest threat to this natural treasure. We have heard some worrying news recently relative to both issues: The construction of five dams is on Croatia's agenda, and they are contemplating to make the river's lower reaches suitable for large ships. The Ombudsman for Future Generations requests the Hungarian Government to inform its Croatian counterpart that, considering the grave environmental damages caused by similar projects in the Szigetköz area, the construction of lowland dams is unacceptable to us, and to confirm our country's commitment to preserve this cross-border biosphere reserve. Marcel Szabó also calls on the competent domestic special administration to give priority to ecological interests when issuing permits.

Furthermore, the Deputy-Commissioner also advocates the rational management of national water resources, ignoring local and short-term interests, when handling inland waters. The green Ombudsman points out that the absence of inland waters in early March is indicative of a serious drought by the end of winter. When inland waters cover less than 120 thousand hectares, it is beneficial to plant production on the remaining 97-98 percent of agricultural land . That is why all professional-strategic studies emphasize that the issue of inland waters should be solved through retaining, not draining them. According to the national water management strategy, areas affected by inland waters should be taken out from the production of arable crops, they should be used instead for less water-sensitive agricultural activities and forestry.

In practice, however, these principles are poorly implemented. As pointed out by the Scientific Council for Water Management, development projects aimed at retaining water are lagging behind and there are no land conversions implemented. Every year in February, mass media is swamped with news of threatening inland waters, and water management authorities spend hundreds of millions of public funds on water drainage, running counter to strategic objectives. According to a Strategic Program of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, there is intensive farming conducted unnecessarily on a significant part of areas affected by inland waters, maintained by a completely misguided system of subsidies. According to the Scientific Council for Water Management, areas not optimal for farming are kept in cultivation as a result of this subsidy system. Draining those lands could lead to water shortage in the whole of the agricultural sector. In order to implement a more rational water management practice, Marcel Szabó calls for a wide professional dialog whose launching he is ready to facilitate.