UBA presents study on water management consequences of brown coal phase-out in Lausitz region | Umweltbundesamt

The legislated phase-out of opencast brown coal mining in the Lausitz region will have major consequences for water management as far away as Berlin. This is because to enable coal mining, the companies pumped almost 60 billion cubic meters of groundwater into the Spree River during the many decades of active mining. This water will be lacking in the future. According to an UBA⁠ study, in dry summer months this could lead to up to 75 percent less water in the Spree locally – with corresponding consequences also for the Spreewald, its lakes and canals, and the drinking water supply in the Berlin region.

The new UBA study has compiled information from over 150 stakeholders and produced an initial surface water assessment. It is using this to examine the possible consequences of the brown coal phase-out for water management in the region from an overall perspective. The study is thus the first systematic and comprehensive examination of the water management consequences of brown coal mining in the Lausitz coalfield. From the UBA's point of view, the study therefore forms a basis for further and more in-depth investigations and coordination by and between the federal states.

In order to cope with the challenges mentioned regarding water quantity and water quality, the federal states of Saxony, Brandenburg and Berlin will coordinate their management, because this requires detailed knowledge of the conditions on site and diverse management decisions, which have to be adapted to ⁠climate change and increasing water demands.

The federal states of Saxony, Brandenburg and Berlin have already initiated several projects that will build on the findings of the UBA study. In order to decide on the feasibility of measures, the impact on river basins and other uses as well as legal responsibilities must also be considered.