The publication of the 2025 Water Status Report by the Josip Juraj Strossmayer Water Institute attracted considerable attention from national and regional media, sparking public debate on Croatia’s water resources, the impacts of climate change, and the importance of their systematic monitoring.
The key findings of this year’s Report were covered by numerous Croatian news portals and print media, while representatives of the Institute appeared on leading national television networks. The Report also received international media coverage, including English-, Hungarian- and Turkish-language websites focusing on environmental issues, Croatia, its natural resources and tourism.
Vesna Stipaničev, Head of the Water Testing Department in Šibenik at the Institute, appeared on Nova TV’s main evening news programme, where she emphasised that Croatia continues to possess highly valuable and well-preserved water resources, particularly groundwater, which forms the foundation of the country’s public water supply. Addressing the increasing frequency of heatwaves, she noted that prolonged droughts and high temperatures can affect both the quantity and quality of water resources, while placing additional pressure on aquatic ecosystems. She stressed that systematic monitoring is essential for the timely detection of changes and for informed decision-making.
Igor Stanković, Acting Head of the Monitoring Sector, appeared in several programmes on Croatian Radiotelevision (HRT), focusing particularly on long-term trends. He pointed out that the monitoring data do not indicate any significant changes in overall trends compared with previous reporting periods. He highlighted that groundwater remains the best-preserved component of Croatia’s aquatic environment, while the principal challenges continue to be the preservation of natural river ecosystems, the reduction of various pressures on the aquatic environment and achieving good chemical status in transitional and coastal waters.
With the publication of this year’s Report, the Institute continues its long-standing practice of making the results of the national water monitoring programme publicly available. All previously published annual reports are also accessible on the Institute’s website, providing citizens, the professional and scientific communities, public authorities and the media with transparent access to long-term information on changes in the status of waters in the Republic of Croatia.
Although it has been operating for less than five years, the Josip Juraj Strossmayer Water Institute has quickly established itself as Croatia’s leading national expert institution for water status monitoring. The strong interest shown by both domestic and international media in this year’s Report demonstrates the growing public demand for reliable, science-based information on water resources. For this reason, the Institute remains committed to the principles of scientific excellence, transparency and open access to data, ensuring that citizens, policymakers and the professional community have access to trustworthy information based on systematic monitoring and sound scientific evidence.
