It is not possible to reliably assess whether the Ministry of the Environment’s subsidies have contributed to improved stormwater management

PRESS RELEASE ON AUDIT NO 25/08 – 1 June 2026


The multi-year drought from 2015 to 2018 highlighted the problem of poor stormwater management in urbanised areas of the Czech Republic. Subsidies* from the Ministry of the Environment (MoE) totalling CZK 1.8 billion were intended to help improve this management. Of this amount, the MoE distributed CZK 1.6 billion among 182 municipalities, representing three percent of the total number of municipalities in the Czech Republic. The Supreme Audit Office (SAO) examined the extent to which the subsidies contributed to improved stormwater management and concluded that, due to an inconsistent system for measuring impacts and effects, the results of financial support from subsidy programmes were incomparable. As a result, it is not possible to reliably assess the benefits of the support provided. The audit also showed that households had little interest in subsidies intended for rainwater retention and the construction of green roofs. In this regard, we lag significantly behind Austria and Germany.

As early as 2019, the MoE prepared a study on stormwater management in which it recommended measures but did not set any specific measurable targets, deadlines, or designate who is responsible for carrying out the tasks. The study is not binding on any of the stakeholders. The MoE has not yet prepared a strategic document on stormwater management. In the three subsidy programmes audited by the SAO, the Ministry established three different sets of indicators for evaluating the effects of the financial support. Due to this inconsistent system of impact measurement, the benefits of the support provided cannot be reliably assessed.

Improving stormwater management is aided by replacing impermeable surfaces with permeable ones, regulating runoff, stormwater collection and retention, as well as installing green roofs. The SAO audited nine of a total of 293 municipal projects which received financial support. These most often focused on replacing impermeable surfaces with permeable ones. The SAO found that the audited municipalities frequently implemented projects without analysing the stormwater management needs across their entire territory. This reduces the impact of the funds provided for climate change adaptation. In five of the audited projects, the SAO found that the beneficiaries had violated the Public Procurement Act. Most often, they unduly favoured specific construction products, thereby restricting competition.

Of the total funding for the New Green Savings (NGS) programme, amounting to CZK 15.7 billion, less than CZK 168 million went toward storage tanks or green roofs for single-family detached homes and apartment buildings—just about one percent of the total subsidy. The SAO audit revealed that households showed little interest in subsidies intended for stormwater management in the form of rainwater harvesting or the construction of green roofs. They preferred financial support for the installation of heat pumps or photovoltaic systems. The MoE did not set any measurable targets for supporting stormwater management under this programme.

Between 2021 and 2024, 1.6 million m2 of green roof areas were constructed in the Czech Republic. Of this total, only 8% was supported by the NGS programme, reflecting low interest among applicants. According to available data, the Czech Republic lags significantly behind Austria and Germany in the construction of green roofs. While, for example, the annual increase in green roof area in Germany reached a total of 10.2 million m2 in 2023, in the Czech Republic it was less than half a million m2.

Communication Department
Supreme Audit Office

* Subsidies provided under the Operational Programme Environment 2021–2027 and the National Recovery Plan.

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