Water removal in Cottbus and the surrounding area strictly prohibited!

Water removal in Cottbus and the surrounding area strictly prohibited!

Cottbus, Deutschland - The city of Cottbus has now issued a comprehensive ban on water withdrawal from rivers and lakes. These measures were determined as part of a general order, which applies from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and was published on the city's website. The ban concerns the water withdrawal through pumps and is a reaction to the ongoing low water levels and the intensifying water shortage in the region. The city administration reports of signals from the state authorities that the removal ban may soon be expanded, since the State Office for the Environment is implementing level 2 of the low water concept in the middle spree area in order to stop drastic water losses. This reports rbb24.

in Cottbus itself and in the neighboring counties Dahme-Spreewald, Spree-Neiße, Oberspreewald-Lausitz and Elbe-Elster have already existed similar removal bans. These bans were enacted to secure water ecology and prevent a further decline in water. In the district of Spree-Neisse in particular, the ban applies to the catchment area of ​​the Spree, including the cities of Spremberg and Drebkau as well as the surrounding communities. In the Dahme-Spreewald district, too, the measures concern cities such as Lübben and Luckau and the catchment area of ​​the Dahme, such as [MAZ-ONLINE] (https://www.maz-online.de/brandenburg/brandenburg-lds-osl-e-und-cottbus-biete-wasser-aus-fluessen-drxkkohle reports.

causes of the water shortage

The prevailing drying conditions this summer not only have an impact on water withdrawal, but also on the groundwater levels throughout Germany. A current study shows that 201 of 401 counties and independent cities in Germany are affected by groundwater stress. In these regions, over 20 percent of the annually newly formed groundwater is taken, which is alarming. Especially in East Germany, as in Brandenburg, the water requirements have increased significantly in recent years, which further tightened the situation, informed ZDFheute.

Experts and environmental organizations urgently demand measures to regulate and sustainable use of water. This includes the promotion of water -saving technologies in agriculture and a fair price for water that takes into account the actual resource. The problems are reinforced by climate change, which has a negative impact on the precipitation and thus the water balance in Brandenburg and Saxony-Anhalt, which already led to nationwide restrictions in water withdrawal in heat summer 2023

With the new regulations, the cities and counties try to stabilize the water balance and to secure the water ecological functions. The prescribed restrictions apply to revocation and are necessary to cope with the serious ecological and economic consequences of the hydropower.