Applicability of Tools for Brownfield Regeneration in the Czech Republic: A Regional Perspective

Abstract

In the current period marked by the need to address a number of economic and social challenges in the context of the sustainable development of towns and municipalities, the issue of the regeneration and reuse of brownfields is a topic that can help find an effective solution on the local, national and international level. The aim of this article is to assess the use of tools in the process of the regeneration of brownfields on the territory of municipalities with extended competence in the Czech Republic. The information contained in this paper was compiled on the basis of a primary survey. It was found that the highest number of abandoned buildings and premises are located in regions which were focused on industrial and mining activities in the past. Furthermore, the authors found that brownfield sites have been regenerated and reused successfully in the territory of the Czech Republic. Based on the relevant survey, the most frequently used financial tools employed by municipalities with extended competence (MEC) for the regeneration of brownfield sites in the last 10 years included municipality budgets, European subsidy programmes and national subsidy programmes. According to the survey, nonfinancial tools used for the successful regeneration of brownfields included own activities and support from the CzechInvest agency. The motives of municipalities and towns located in the territory of individual MECs in the relevant country included mainly a new use of buildings (the rescue of historical buildings/premises and unused industrial parts of a village/town) in the territory of the MEC. The results of the article also highlights the regional differences of the studied area in the case of the existence and use of various financial and non-financial instruments in the process of brownfield regeneration in individual MECs in the Czech Republic.