The environmental organization BUND warned on Friday against deepening the Elbe navigation channel for ships, referring to the recent flood disaster in western Germany.

“Rivers need more space instead of a tight corset,” the association said. Navigation should not be the priority, it said.

The Czech nature conservation organization Arnika criticized the agreement saying it would lead to “irreparable damage to nature.”

The organization warned against a revival of the Czech plans for a barrage directly on the border near the city of Decin, which had been shelved last year.

Czech Trade Minister Karel Havlicek and German Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer signed the Elbe deal in a joint video conference on Tuesday.

Havlicek declared it his goal to ensure the navigability of the Elbe from Pardubice to Hamburg almost all year round by 2030.

Pardubice is located almost 100 kilometres east of Prague. The aim is to achieve a fairway depth of 2.30 metres on the Czech side and 1.40 metres on the German side.