Insula Insolita – Szigetköz és Bős-Nagymaros párhuzamos története

István  Zsuffa; András Szöllősi-Nagy; János Bogárdi

doi:10.59258/hk.11537

István Zsuffa University of Public Services, Faculty of Water Sciences, Department of Strategy and International Affairs
András Szöllősi-Nagy University of Public Services, Faculty of Water Sciences, Department of Strategy and International Affairs
János Bogárdi Institute of Advanced Studies Kőszeg (iASK) https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4755-9015

Keywords: Szigetköz, Gabčikovo-Nagymaros Water Barrage Scheme, hydrology, channel morphology, ecohydrology, water quality, water management, politics, international law, water supplement scheme

Abstract

The goal of the article is to presents the parallel history of the Szigetköz floodplain and the Gabčikovo-Nagymaros Barrage Scheme (GNBS), and also to draw the conclusions of this history. As a side effect of flood control and river training works implemented prior to the GNBS, and also due to the increasing pollution of the Danube River, severe degradation processes had started in the Szigetköz. One of the envisaged objectives of the GNBS was to stop and reverse these degradations. In the eighties of the last century however, environmental movements emerged with the aim of preventing the implementation of GNBS. They opposed the GNBS on environmental grounds, albeit referring to false arguments. Due to their strong political influence, these movements finally managed to accomplish their goal: the GNBS project was first suspended and then permanently discontinued by the Hungarian side. Slovakia on the other hand, as the other participant in this international project, did not give it up and after adapting to the situation resulted by the Hungarian withdrawal, she unilaterally implemented the project. This resulted in the diversion of the Szigetköz Danube reach 30 years ago. The shutdown of the GNBS project by the Hungarian side has caused severe damages to Hungary: besides the financial and moral damages, the country de facto lost the international lawsuit it initiated against Slovakia in the case, furthermore it does not even benefit from the renewable energy generated by the project. Outcomes of monitoring activities have denied the charges of the opponents about the ecological catastrophes being caused by the GNBS. The fact is that the ground- and surface waters of the Szigetköz floodplain have undergone improvements with respect to the pre-GNBS times both in terms of quality and quantity. These improvements have been brought about by the improved water qualities of the Danube, and also by the water supplement scheme constructed in the Szigetköz. By implementing the water supplement scheme, the Hungarian water management service has proven once again that it is capable of great achievements.

Author Biographies

István Zsuffa , University of Public Services, Faculty of Water Sciences, Department of Strategy and International Affairs

István Zsuffa graduated at the Budapest University of Technology in 1991, with distinction. He earned his PhD degree in 2001 at the Wageningen University, on the field of environmental sciences. The topic of his PhD research was application of multi-criteria decision support systems for the ecological revitalisation of river floodplain systems. From 2001 till 2012, he was employed by the Water Management Research Centre (VITUKI), where he participated in several national and international R+D projects. The most significant one was the EU supported WETwin project, which was coordinated by Dr. Zsuffa himself. This international project was focusing on the ecological revitalisation of wetlands in Africa, South America and Europe. Since 2012, Dr. Zsuffa is being employed by the VITUKI Hungary Plc., where he is currently developing rainfall-runoff hydrological models for supporting water resources management and flood forecasting in small- and medium-size catchments in Hungary. Besides R+D activities, Dr. Zsuffa is teaching hydrology, hydrological modelling and hydrometry at the National University of Public Service and also at the Eötvös Lóránd University

András Szöllősi-Nagy, University of Public Services, Faculty of Water Sciences, Department of Strategy and International Affairs

SZÖLLŐSI-NAGY, András, Civil Engineer, Hydrologist, Dr. Techn., PhD, Dr. Habil., Doctor of Science of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Prof. Dr. HC mult., Professor at the Faculty of Water Sciences, National University of Public Service; scientific advisor Institute of Advanced Studies (iASK), Kőszeg, Hungary; President of the international Sustainable Water Futures Programme /Future Earth, Brisbane, Australia. Previously Secretary General of the Paris based UNESCO International Hydrological Programme (IHP) for 20 years, later President of its Intergovernmental Council, and then Rector of the UNESCO-IHE Institute of Water Education, Delft, the Netherlands. Currently Chairman of the Editorial Board of the Hidrológiai Közlöny, formerly Editor-in-Chief. With T. E. Unny founding Editor-in -Chief of the International Journal of Stochastic Hydrology and Hydraulics (Springer Verlag). Szöllösi-Nagy started his professional career in Hungary at VITUKI (Water Resources Research Center), Budapest, in the Department of System Hydrology of Gábor Kienitz. Later he became Deputy Director General for Science at VITUKI in 1989. During his carrier he worked at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), the University of Waterloo, Canada, and was visiting professor at several universities. He is a member and currently Vice-President of the Hungarian Academy of Engineering and Vice-President of the Hungarian Society of Natural Sciences.

János Bogárdi , Institute of Advanced Studies Kőszeg (iASK)

János Bogárdi graduated from the Budapest University of Technology as civil engineer with gold degree in 1969. In 1971, he obtained a postgraduate diploma in hydrology at the University of Padua (Italy). He attained his doctorate in engineering (Dr.-Ing.) at the University of Karlsruhe in Germany in 1979. He worked as an assistant at the Budapest University of Technology, Department of Water Management (1969-1971) and then at the University of Karlsruhe (1974-1979), where he was also a senior research associate between 1980-1983. He acted as a consultant for several years in Germany and Africa (between 1971-1973 and 1983-1985). Between 1985 and 1988, he was an associate professor at the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT, Thailand). Between 1989 and 1995, he educated as professor at the University of Agriculture in Wageningen. From 1995 to 2003, he was a senior associate of UNESCO and head of the Sustainable Water Management Section in Paris. Between 2003 and 2009, he was the founding director of the Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) of the UN University in Bonn. Between 2007 and 2009, he was the European Vice-Rector of UNU. From 2009 to 2012, he was the executive director of the international Global Water System Project (GWSP) within the Development Research Center (ZEF) of the University of Bonn. Since 2004, he has been a co-opted professor at the Faculty of Agriculture of the University of Bonn. Since 2012, he has been a key employee of ZEF. Since 2016, he has been a distinguished visiting professor at AIT. Since 2017, he has been a scientific advisor at the Institute of Higher Education in Kőszeg, and from 2022 he is an honorary guest professor at the Universidad Autonóma del Estado de Hidalgo (UAEH) in Mexico. Author or co-author of more than 200 scientific publications. Awarded by several universities, mainly in Central Europe. Honorary Doctor (Dr.h.c.) of the Warsaw University of Agriculture (1996), BME (1997) and Nizhny Novgorod State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering. In 2008, he won the Cannes International Water Prize (Grand Prix des Lumières de l'Eau). Member of the editorial board of the Hungarian Journal Hydrology until 2021. Honorary member of MHT since 2017.

Insula Insolita – Parallel history of the Szigetköz area and the Gabčikovo-Nagymaros Barrage Scheme

Abstract

Author Biographies