The amount of water in surface waters is very low. This has a negative impact on water temperatures and oxygen supply and therefore also on the self-purification capacity of the water bodies. Even stretches of water that still appear to have a higher water level are at risk. This situation is threatening for many animals and plants that depend on water bodies as a habitat.
The withdrawal of water from the watercourses intensifies and accelerates this process. As it is unlikely that the low water situation will change in the near future, the Ludwigsburg District Office has issued a general decree. This prohibits all water withdrawals from surface waters. This also applies to existing water withdrawal permits that are revoked for a limited period. Excluded from this regulation are all hydropower plants, heat pump systems and other water utilization systems that discharge the extracted water back into the watercourse after use. The water withdrawal ban does not apply to the Neckar federal waterway, including its power plant canals and the Rems, as these waterways have a larger catchment area and therefore more water. The Gründelbachalso has sufficient water from the Eglosheim sewage treatment plant onwards, so that the Gründelbach is exempt from the ban until it flows into the Altneckar. Local regulations apply to the Heiligenbergsee and Hohenhaslacher See lakes.
The ban is intended to help ensure that the water situation does not deteriorate any further and that a minimum water flow is maintained to preserve the ecological functions of the watercourse. District Administrator Dietmar Allgaier appeals to everyone's common sense to comply with the withdrawal ban to protect our waters. Violations of the general decree can be punished with fines.
