Joint press release by Deutscher Naturschutzring (DNR), Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH), WWF Deutschland, Naturschutzbund Deutschland (NABU), Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland (BUND) Brandenburg, Grüne Liga Brandenburg and NaturFreunde Brandenburg

Several German environmental associations, in coordination with their Polish partner associations, have lodged a formal objection against the decision of the Director of the Environment in Szczecin, Poland, to approve the expansion of the Odra river. The German environmental organisations are convinced that the expansion would have a massive impact on valuable natural landscapes along the Odra river. The appeal also opens up the possibility for the environmental organisations to take legal action against the project.

The state water company Wody Polskie claims that the deepening of the Odra river is necessary for icebreaker operations in case of critical ice jams on 80 to 90 % of the year. At the same time, it would also improve fairway conditions for inland navigation. However, the environmental associations do not see any improvement in flood protection through the planned deepening of the Odra and even fear an increase in water levels during floods. The expansion project was also rejected in the environmental committee of the Brandenburg state parliament. "We welcome the broad rejection of the project that became clear in the committee. The state government should present the negative impacts of the expansion to the people in the Oderbruch and advocate for the federal government to take action vis-à-vis the Polish government," explains Carsten Preuß, Chairman of BUND Brandenburg.

The current response of EU Environment Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius on the expansion of the Odra River makes the strict requirements of EU environmental law clear. Florian Schöne, Political Director of the environmental umbrella organisation Deutscher Naturschutzring (DNR) emphasises: "The project poses a considerable risk of deteriorating the ecological status of the Odra. This contradicts the imperative of European water protection to take all measures to reduce negative impacts on the status of surface waters. The upgrading works are not justified by an overriding public interest. The alleged benefit of the expansion could also be achieved with measures that are associated with less intervention and lower costs from the point of view of environmental protection."
The associations involved are convinced that the expansion project will considerably endanger one of the last near-natural, free-flowing rivers in Central Europe with large-scale floodplain protection areas. According to the requirements of the Habitats and Birds Directives, deterioration is prohibited, and avoidance or compensation of interventions is generally not achievable with river construction projects of this kind. Should legal action be taken, the EU Commission will also have to contact the German and Polish authorities to ensure compliance with the legislation.

The comments on the documentation of environmental impacts for the environmental impact assessment of the project. (in German)

The answer of EU Commissioner for Environment and Oceans Virginijus Sinkevičius to the parliamentary question "Expansion of the Odra - Incompatibility with the Water Framework Directive" by MEP Ska Keller of 31 August 2020

First published on 03.02.2021.