In a stark revelation, the recently published 2022 State of the Environment Report by the Czech Environmental Information Agency (CENIA) highlights the severe impact of high temperatures and erratic rainfall on the Czech Republic’s climate. The nation grappled with the triple threat of climatic, soil, and hydrological droughts, resulting in an elevated risk of wildfires, reaching the highest level since the turn of the century.

Europe, particularly the Czech Republic, bore the brunt of climatic extremes in 2022, emerging as the fastest heating continent globally. The report unveils a concerning trend, with Europe witnessing its hottest summer and second-hottest year on record. Drought conditions affected an expansive 630,000 square kilometers of land, significantly surpassing the average of 167,000 square kilometers observed between 2000 and 2022. Notably, the country’s fire danger index for the growing season reached the second-highest level since 2000, culminating in the largest forest fire in Czech history at the Bohemian Switzerland National Park in July 2022.

Beyond climatic challenges, the report identifies intensive farming practices and low fragmentation of the agricultural landscape as contributors to land degradation. The dwindling agricultural land, particularly arable areas, coupled with a rise in built-up land, poses a threat to the country’s environmental sustainability. The Ministry of the Environment is set to implement protective measures, including an amendment to the law on agricultural land fund protection, safeguarding valuable agricultural land from further degradation.

While surface water quality exhibited significant improvement in 2022, driven by the construction of new wastewater treatment plants, the report underscores the persistent issue of smog. Ozone level thresholds were breached five times during the year, lasting a cumulative 53 hours.

Despite advancements in reducing emissions from transportation, individual car transport remains a substantial contributor to air pollution. The report outlines a decline in emissions of basic pollutants from transport, with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and carbon monoxide emissions registering at 76.5% and 76.3%, respectively.

The reduction in greenhouse gas emissions faced challenges from factors such as the bark beetle calamity in forests, slow developments in the energy and transport sectors, and external geopolitical events like the war in Ukraine and the energy crisis. As the nation grapples with these environmental challenges, policymakers face the urgent task of implementing robust measures to safeguard the Czech Republic’s ecological balance and mitigate the impacts of climate change.

Article by Prague Forum