As a response to landscape drainage in the modern era, caused by the intensification of agriculture, the drying up of ponds, and land reclamation activities, interest in the opposite process has reappeared, i.e. irrigation. Existing irrigation systems, at present often non-functional and preserved only in parts, have become the subject of interest for this project which tried to capture the historical development of this specific water management field as well as part of the industry associated with the implementation of irrigation and the production of soil irrigation equipment. The research also included defining suitable procedures for identifying irrigation structures and systems in the landscape using modern methods and technical tools. In the broader context of the current fight against the impact of drought, the project and its outputs, including the exhibition itself, should contribute to raising awareness of the history of irrigation planning, construction, and maintenance in the Czech lands and the transfer of this heritage to the present, including at the local level. The authors’ intention is to capture individual topics in a visually attractive form using maps, reconstructions, and visual material. The exhibition is designed as a mobile one and is intended for the general public. An accompanying part of the exhibition is a peer-reviewed catalogue, which develops individual topics and presents the localities of historical irrigation systems in our country and abroad listed on the exhibition panels. At the same time, it summarizes the results of the NAKI grant project of the same name, implemented between 2020 and 2022. 

Examples of current irrigation (by sprinklers, Eastern Bohemia) and in the past (a system of irrigation canals from the Morava River, near Chropyně) (Photo: Radek Bachan, WRI TGM, 2021) 

Exhibition schedule: 

1–30 October 2022                          Hostětín – Komunitní centrum & Ekocentrum Veronica 

31 October – 11 November 2022    Flower garden in Kroměříž  

14–21 November 2022                 Olomouc – Fort Science (Interactive Science Centre of  Palacký University Olomouc) 

1–31 December 2022                       Brno – Technical Museum in Brno  

 On behalf of the consortium research team, we cordially invite you to the exhibition. 

Miloš Rozkošný (TGM WRI) 

Zbyněk Sviták (Masaryk University Brno) 

Zbyněk Kulhavý (Research Institute for Soil and Water Conservation) 

 You can find current information, including details of other installation locations at https://heis.vuv.cz/projekty/zavlahy 

The article was translated on the basis of the Czech original by Environmental Translation Ltd.