According to a report released by the ministry on Thursday, the Polish Angling Association signed a deal with the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management in Opole, saying that the programme would be realized within three years.

The report added that the cost of “the restoration of ecosystem and biodiversity of the Oder River” project totalled €370,000 and that EU funding would cover all of the costs.

“The aim of the project is to support the restoration of the Oder River ecosystems by increasing the fish population and biodiversity,” the report said, continuing: “The first step will be to monitor ichthyofauna... An increase in fish population will take place during the third year of the programme.”

The 2022 ecological disaster left thousands of fish dead after they were exposed to a species of golden algae that produced lethal toxins.

Quoted in the report, Climate Minister Paulina Hennig-Kloska said that after the 2022 disaster, the Oder, which is Poland’s second longest river, needed a systemic packet of measures.

She said: “It is an absolute priority for the ministry to prevent disasters of a similar scale and to improve the ecological condition of the river.”

“Above all, we are thinking of the future of the river and restoring the fish population in the coming years.

“Restoring biodiversity, within the project, fits into the plan of the repair of the river.”