Court overturns water supply law: consequences for Strausberg and Erkner!

Court overturns water supply law: consequences for Strausberg and Erkner!

In a recent decision by the Berlin-Brandenburg Higher Administrative Court (OVG), it was found that the regulations limiting the quantities of drinking water purchased by the Strausberg-Erkner Water Association (WSE) are partly illegal. As rbb24 reports, this judgment came after an application for regulatory review by three property owners. The court particularly criticized the water supply statutes and described them as “too vague”. There is a complete lack of a clear benchmark for the quantities of drinking water granted, and the regulations require property owners to apply for a connection permit by March 2030 at the latest.

The OVG asked the association to set a maximum amount of drinking water for each property. Until this approval is granted, the right of use should be based on average per capita consumption, whereby the drinking water installation should serve as the basis for commercial use. The court also made it clear that the association's general authorization to restrict consumption in the event of an impending water shortage was not objected to. Irrigation bans and temporary restrictions on use are therefore permissible, but must be based on the specific danger situation.

Measures to secure water reserves

In order to continue to act despite the legal uncertainties, the WSE has already concluded new contracts with new customers in the private household sector, which provide for a cap on water supply. According to maz-online, 37 cubic meters of water per person per year are provided for in these contracts. This is necessary if the extraction of groundwater is further restricted. The association also has affinities with industrial companies, including the electric car manufacturer Tesla, which is based in Grünheide.

The situation with water reserves remains tense: the WSE has only limited permission to extract groundwater, and existing land use plans contribute to the depletion of these reserves. A hopeful piece of news could be the approval of the Ministry of the Environment to pump additional amounts of water. However, existing contracts threaten to result in administrative fines or fines if the agreed quantity is exceeded, but citizens are spared a stop to the water supply.

Drinking water statistics and regional differences

As the statistics from the Federal Ministry for the Environment show, water consumption in Berlin, where two thirds of the drinking water comes from bank filtrate, is significantly higher with a per capita consumption of 110 to 115 liters per day than the national average of 128 liters. Berlin also has a higher waterworks capacity compared to other regions and could reopen closed waterworks if necessary. The water companies in the capital currently see no reason to limit the amount of water for end consumers.

However, with increasing water consumption rates in Berlin's suburbs, the outlook is tense. Experts emphasize that careful use of water not only serves sustainability, but is also seen as an important contribution to saving energy, as pumping water requires a lot of energy. It will therefore remain exciting to see how the drinking water supply situation will develop in the coming years.