ABSTRACT
The Danube as it was when the Gabcikovo-Nagymaros project began was far from being in its natural state. It had already been subject to considerable human intervention, both above and below the middle reach, where the dam system was to be constructed. A number of political and economic factors militated against the project at this stage. Apart from the reticence that already noted in Hungary, the Czechs were not enthusiastic about diverting investment into this essentially Slovak Danube project, preferring to develop hydro-electric power on the Vlatava river in the Czech lands. After 1968, the Czechoslovak leadership became more Slovak-dominated and political decision-making, including investment decisions, became more receptive to Slovak interests. The new protocol was signed in Budapest on February 6, 1989. This protocol deferred the completion date of Nagymaros by 15 months and Gabcikovo by 14 months. The project would have come on stream in 1992.
