Protective structures financed from anti-flood prevention programmes sometimes provide insufficient protection
Press Release – August 19, 2013
The Supreme Audit Office (SAO) performed an audit of two anti-flood prevention programmes implemented in the period 2007-2012: "Flood Prevention Programme II" with the total budget of CZK 11,500 million and programme "Renewal, dredging and rehabilitation of fishponds and constructions of water reservoirs" with the total budget of CZK 3,100 million. The auditors scrutinized the Ministry of Agriculture and the administration of the programmes. At the beneficiaries, auditors focused on 33 selected operations worth CZK 2,600 million in total.
The SAO warns that it is not possible to verify whether the programmes ensured the most effective anti-flood prevention. The criteria of the later programme, which aimed at fishponds and water reservoirs, did not assess the number of protected inhabitants or the extent of the protected areas. It will not be possible to assess whether the funds have been spent in the most effective ways with respect to anti-flood prevention. With eight out of the 15 audited operations, auditors concluded that funds were spent on projects, which had poor or no effect on anti-flood protection regarding inhabitants and properties.
At beneficiaries, errors were made during the preparation phase of one construction. The project was gradually reduced and cut out tree out of five locations, where anti-flood protection constructions should have been built according to the original plans. Thus, the protected area was reduced by 21 % while the construction costs increased by 12 %.
Errors were also made in the process of suppliers´ selection. During the selection procedures, beneficiaries failed to pre-set the maximum allowable contractual penalty and the maximum length of guarantee periods. Some candidates offered extremely high contractual penalties and unreasonably long guarantee periods, which resulted in unequally positive evaluations. The contracts were awarded to them in spite they had asked for higher costs than other candidates. For example with the project "Lovosicko (Píšťany-Lovosice) - Q100 flood protection at the Elbe river basin - the construction phase", the selected contractor estimated costs higher by CZK 47 million than the second candidate, but the contract was awarded to this one as the contractual penalty exceeded the second candidate´s offer by six times.
For further details about auditing operation No. 12/27 (in Czech only), see the following link: http://www.nku.cz/assets/media/informace-12-27.pdf (357 kB).
Communication Department
Supreme Audit Office