Thuringia plans revolutionary water management for agriculture!

Thuringia plans revolutionary water management for agriculture!

In Thuringia, a new project is launched that aims to optimize water management in agriculture and better adjust to drought period. Under the name "Land.wasser", Thuringia's Minister of Agriculture Colette Boos-John (CDU) and the water maintenance association Obere Unstrut/Helferbach and four farms have started an initiative to start in 2026 and run over three years. The costs of the project amount to around 487,000 euros, and it is about keeping water better in the area in order to be able to better survive future drought. The developments of the past few years have by no means have been unnoticed: in 2025 one of the driest spring has been since 1881, which makes the urgency of the measures all the more clear. As N-TV reports, the slowdown of the water outflow by troughs and ramparts and the storage of water in pools will play a central role.

But why is this project so important? The answer can be found in the increasing temperatures and extreme weather events that go hand in hand with climate change. The decline in groundwater levels and the drying out of the soils have been acute challenges in Germany in the past ten years. According to the Federal Environment Agency, many initiatives deal with the effects of drought and drought on the water balance and the groundwater availability in Germany. Projects such as "Wadklim" not only examine the current water availability, but also future conflicts in water use are to be analyzed in order to develop corresponding solution strategies.

Climate change and its effects

Climate change has a significant impact on agriculture. This is not only evident from more frequent drought and heavy rain periods, but also by the changed growing conditions and crop yields, which have been noticed noticeably in the past 50 years. Weather experts confirm that the average temperatures rise and extreme weather conditions increase - both in summer and winter. This not only endangers the harvests, but also brings health risks to animal welfare, for example in cows that suffer from increasing temperatures.

It is becoming increasingly important for the farmers and farmers to take the right measures to secure earnings. These include, among other things, frost protection affection and efficient irrigation systems. Business risk management is also becoming increasingly important. Climate change also brings opportunities, such as the possibility of achieving earnings several times a year in northern areas, but the risks do not fail. The previous vegetation beginnings of many plants also lead to an increased susceptibility to late frosts.

The current projects to improve water management in agriculture are therefore essential to counteract the challenges of climate change and to develop future -proof adaptation strategies. The Thuringian project "Land.wasser" could be an important component here. The merger of measures for better control of water use and the preservation of fertile floors will be decisive for the stability of agriculture in the coming years. Climate change is there, and everyone involved has to react to this - with a good hand and the right strategies.

For more information about the effects of climate change on agriculture, visit the pages of n-tv, Umweltbundesamt und Landwirtschaft.de.