Widespread drought across Slovakia has caused water levels to plummet, exposing the dry lakebeds of major reservoirs including Ružín on the Hornád river. The shrinking water levels have revealed large accumulations of discarded waste, prompting local volunteer cleanups and administrative requests for protective floating barriers.
Slovakia is experiencing a notably dry year, with precipitation deficits running into tens or hundreds of millimeters across the country since the beginning of the period. Eastern Slovakia is feeling the impact particularly acutely, where ongoing monitoring shows widespread moderate to extreme drought conditions and persistent soil moisture deficits. The lack of rainfall has dried up wells, reduced stream flows, and left rivers running at low volumes.
The dry spell is now severely affecting the country’s major water reservoirs. Among them, the Ružín reservoir on the Hornád river has once again dropped to levels that lay bare vast expanses of its underlying bed, mirroring the conditions last seen during the dry summer of 2022.
Exposed Trash on the Dry Bed of Ružín
As water receded from Ružín, it uncovered massive piles of accumulated waste that are normally submerged. The exposed lakebed revealed a heavy layer of plastic bottles, food packaging, and miscellaneous refuse. The visible pollution drew sharp criticism from local volunteer networks.
Fishermen, locals, tourists, local government, everyone should be ashamed. They are surrounded by beautiful nature and a beautiful reservoir and nobody cares. If every single person took at least one bag and collected something, everything would look different, but nowadays if someone doesn’t get some cash out of it, they won’t lift a finger. Members of the civic association Save Nature by Čivas, via Zoznam
Members of the Save Nature by Čivas association organized a cleanup operation on the dried-out sections of the reservoir. Volunteers reported that navigating the muddy ground proved physically demanding, with participants sinking up to their knees in unstable terrain while clearing the garbage. Residents commenting on the local conditions argued that municipal authorities should press neighboring communities to address the upstream sources of the trash.
Jurisdiction and Preventative Barriers at Ružín
The responsibility for managing the water structures and funding the removal of floating and waterborne waste rests with the Slovak Water Management Enterprise, according to a spokesperson for the Košice Self-Governing Region. Although the regional authority does not hold direct jurisdiction over the reservoir’s maintenance, the county collaborates with civic groups to improve the site’s environmental presentation.
Water Levels Across Western and Eastern Reservoirs
Built between 1963 and 1972, Ružín was originally designed to capture utility water and generate hydroelectric power before evolving into a regional tourist and recreation hub. Its main basin, Ružín I, possesses a total volume of approximately 52 million m³ and spans an area of approximately 3.9 km² at maximum capacity.
Following an increase in water levels at the beginning of 2023 when the reservoir filled to roughly 89 percent capacity after winter snowmelt and rains, the current drop has returned the basin to a depleted state. Meteorological analysts note that short-term showers cannot offset the accumulated water deficit, indicating that only an extended period of widespread and heavy precipitation will alter the trajectory of the current dry period.