Brandenburg's water emergency situation: strict limits for withdrawals from July!

Brandenburg's water emergency situation: strict limits for withdrawals from July!

A hydropower is coming to the municipalities in Brandenburg, which could further tighten the already tense situation. From July, strict limits for water withdrawals, such as Meetingpoint-brandenburg.de registered. Despite the rainfall in 2024, the situation has not improved sustainably. The extremely dry years from 2018 to 2023 continue to throw their shadows on the natural water balance, which suffers from persistent drought and high temperatures.

The measures to improve water quality and the ecological state are now essential. In Brandenburg an der Havel, the water withdrawal from surface waters is simply prohibited - with one exception: only suction wagons that are used to irrigate trees and shrubs on public areas can still be removed. In addition, the irrigation of private green and garden areas with groundwater is limited to the night hours between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m. These regulations come into force with the publication in the Official Journal on June 30th.

background of the water shortage

But how did this dramatic development come about? A look at the causes offers Environmental Bundesamt.de . The water shortage in Germany is a complex problem that is due to climatic conditions, water quality problems, mining and the increasing water requirements - especially in the metropolitan regions. In addition, intensive water uses in agriculture also require a critical consideration. The continuing drought and uncertainties regarding the future use of water show that the measures taken so far are not sufficient.

The Wadklim research project has already formulated solutions that are intended to contribute to the German adaptation strategy to climate change. These include the promotion of water efficiency and the use of water recurrence in urban rooms for irrigation of green areas. The need to act is clear: politicians and decision -makers have to integrate sustainable water use strategies into their plans in order to minimize future usage conflicts.

A look into the future

The predictions for the coming years are anything but rosy. Future dry periods could further reduce water availability in many regions of Germany. This could lead to an tightening of existing usage conflicts. Therefore, it becomes all the more important that natural ecosystems are also increased more in the course of planning and implementing measures. The goal is a balanced relationship between the different user groups - from agriculture to urban needs.