On Sunday, the Racibórz Dolny flood control reservoir on the Oder was activated. "The reservoir should flatten the flood wave heading towards Opole and Wrocław. In the case of Wrocław, the situation will definitely not be like it was in 1997, but it's hard to say if there will be no flood risk at all," said Professor Joanna Wibig, co-author of the book Climate Change in Poland, and a professor at the Department of Meteorology and Climatology at the University of Łódź, in an interview with Next.gazeta.pl.
As for higher-elevation areas, a repeat of the 1997 flood has already occurred, in some places with even greater intensity
- she added.
The Racibórz Dolny Reservoir Should Absorb All the Water
Joanna Kopczyńska, President of the Polish Waters National Water Management Authority, stated on Sunday in Katowice that the Racibórz Dolny reservoir should absorb all the incoming water. "The Racibórz reservoir should absorb everything, and cities like Opole, Kędzierzyn-Koźle, Krapkowice, and Wrocław will be safe," she said during a press conference, as reported by PAP. Kopczyńska emphasized that "this is the first time we're operationally using the reservoir". "We are optimistic, but the situation is dynamic" - she added.
In July 1997, the so-called "flood of the millennium" inundated Wrocław. Nearly 40 proc. of the city was underwater, affecting about 200,000 people, with damages estimated at 99 proc. of the city's annual budget. The catastrophic flood was caused by intense rainfall, with mountain rivers flowing into the Oder, causing its level to rise rapidly. At the last measuring point before Wrocław, the water level reached 724 centimeters, twice the average for that location.
How the Racibórz Dolny Flood Control Reservoir Was Built
On Sunday, September 15th, the Racibórz Dolny flood control reservoir began operating, taking in the swollen waters of the Oder River. Its total capacity is 185 million cubic meters. As of Sunday at 6 p.m., the reservoir had absorbed 15 million cubic meters of water. Meanwhile, the Buków polder (which started operating on Saturday) contains 35 million cubic meters of water, which is about 60 proc. of its flood capacity, as reported by Polish Waters.
The Racibórz Dolny reservoir was designed to handle catastrophic floods from the Oder. It mitigates the impact of floodwaters for residents of three provinces along the Oder: Silesia, Opole, and Lower Silesia. The reservoir flattens the flood wave and delays the arrival of the Oder wave at the confluence with the Nysa Kłodzka River, reducing the likelihood of two peak waves converging.
The dry reservoir in Racibórz is the largest hydraulic structure in Poland. Its construction was completed between May and June 2020. It covers an area of 26 square kilometers, with a design capacity of 185 million cubic meters. The reservoir's dams stretch over 20 kilometers. The project was funded by the European Union, the World Bank, the Council of Europe Development Bank, and the Polish state budget, costing around 2 billion PLN. The reservoir first held back water in October 2020. It works in conjunction with the Buków polder, which has a flood capacity of 57 million cubic meters.
The idea for the reservoir was first considered after the catastrophic flood of 1880. Initial studies were completed in the 1960s, proposing a multi-purpose reservoir with volumes ranging from 290 million to 695 million cubic meters, but the scale of the investment proved too large to finance in a normal project cycle. In the mid-1970s, another version of the spatial and technical solution was developed. In 2001, during Jerzy Buzek's term as Prime Minister, a long-term government program called "Program for the Oder 2006" was established, with the construction of the Racibórz Dolny flood control reservoir as its main element. The construction tender took place in 2010 under the government of Donald Tusk, and construction permits were obtained in 2012. In 2017, during Mateusz Morawiecki's tenure as Prime Minister, a new agreement was signed to complete the reservoir. The facility was put into operation in June 2020.
