"I would compare it to the construction of Josefův Důl, where there was no information about what the water looked like. The previous regime was overburdened by trying to just build. Building and building production capacity, which is probably good, but completely reckless. And that is wrong. It's basically doing the same thing over and over again. Because the impact of producing something, I should be aware of what I'm producing and whether I'm damaging the environment. Either humans or the ecosystem as a whole. And that's what the previous regime neglected."
"Of course, we were figuring out how to get the limestone [into the water]. Whether to put it on the tributaries ... that didn't work very well. Because at the time we started it, the tributaries hadn't been revived by fish... but still - it wasn't pretty. We came up with the idea of putting it in the reservoir. Well, how? By air, because you can't put limestone in from a boat. There were over 90 tons of it going in, and it had to be done in a short time to make sense, so it was done by air. The first time I limed, I'll tell you I didn't sleep all night [because I was afraid] of how it would all turn out. But then we found out that it really works."
"The first week we had to watch from behind the curtain because my mum wouldn't let us go anywhere. After that, we got a little bit braver and went behind Brno to a part we called 'Akátky' where the garrison was camping. That was quite unpleasant. As boys we were curious, but when we saw foreign soldiers walking around with guns, it was an experience of a lifetime. I never want to experience that again. I'm actually a very peaceful person. So I've been in the military where they offered me to stay there, but I couldn't do that. And when you see foreign soldiers with machine guns walking around the places we used to go sledging, you remember that."
Luděk Rederer was born on 30 January 1955 in Brno. His parents, Marie and Josef Rederer, led their sons to sports and a love of nature. Perhaps because of this, the teenage Luděk became a member of a scout troop. He graduated from grammar school in Brno in 1974. He continued his studies at the then University of Agriculture in Brno (now Mendel University). There he graduated in 1979 with a degree in fisheries and hydrobiology. In the same year he joined the Elbe River Basin Company and enlisted for one year of military service. In 1983-1985 he completed postgraduate studies in Water Biology at the Faculty of Science of Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Brno (now Masaryk University). His professional growth was shaped by the so-called dinoflagellate accident at the Souš water reservoir. Subsequently, he participated in solving a number of risk situations related to water quality in reservoirs. He was also involved in the development of a number of methods of professional monitoring of water quality in reservoirs. He did not sympathise with the communist regime of the time, but welcomed the events of the Velvet Revolution with enthusiasm. He joined the general strike and briefly joined the Civic Forum. At the time of recording (2025), Luděk Rederer lived in Hradec Králové.
Filling of the Josefův Důl Waterworks Reservoir. The picture shows the main dam with a shaft spillway and the associated building with a footbridge, around 1981
Filling of the Josefův Důl Waterworks Reservoir. The picture shows the main dam with a shaft spillway and the associated building with a footbridge, around 1981
Filling of the Josefův Důl Waterworks Reservoir. In the picture - the main dam with the shaft overflow, the footbridge to the combined building and in the background the objects of the construction site equipment, around 1981
Filling of the Josefův Důl Waterworks Reservoir. In the picture - the main dam with the shaft overflow, the footbridge to the combined building and in the background the objects of the construction site equipment, around 1981
Spring aerial liming of the Souš Waterworks Reservoir in May 1996. The hollows on the left bank show places where there used to be a forest. Today, such a view is no longer possible - the forest restoration has been successful
Spring aerial liming of the Souš Waterworks Reservoir in May 1996. The hollows on the left bank show places where there used to be a forest. Today, such a view is no longer possible - the forest restoration has been successful
Aerial view of the completely deforested area of the crossing of the Riding Path and the main tributary to the Souš Waterworks Reservoir and the Černá Desná River, May 1996
Aerial view of the completely deforested area of the crossing of the Riding Path and the main tributary to the Souš Waterworks Reservoir and the Černá Desná River, May 1996
