Water experts and geologists have been working towards this moment for 30 years. On this Tuesday, this year’s World Water Day, the time has come: In order to come a decisive step closer to the planned 66 square kilometer drinking water protection area west of Würzburg, the drinking water supply Würzburg GmbH (TWV) submits the application documents to the district office of Würzburg. This means that after three decades of hydrogeological investigations and numerous reports, the office can officially open the procedure for expanding the drinking water protection area for the Zell springs.
The second largest drinking water protection area in Bavaria is to be created in the west of Würzburg. It could affect numerous major projects and construction projects across the region.
One example is the planned Class 1 landfill site of the Beuerlein company in Helmstadt, which the North Bavarian Mining Authority in Bayreuth will soon decide on. It would be the only landfill for class 1 toxic construction waste in Lower Franconia. “Should it come, we demand that its operation remain manageable even in the unlikely event of an accident and that the groundwater is not endangered,” says Alfred Lanfervoß, department head of the Würzburg drinking water supply company.
Gypsum deposits in the future drinking water protection area
Another example is the largest gypsum mine in Bavaria, which the Main Franconian family company Knauf is currently planning in the hilly triangle between Altertheim, Helmstadt and Waldbrunn. Because in the middle of the subterranean water catchment area of the Zell springs lies a huge deposit of raw materials, which the world’s largest gypsum refiner, with 40,000 employees on all continents and annual sales of more than 12 billion euros, has their eyes on. As far as the planned Knauf pit is concerned, the final assessment as to whether it would endanger the groundwater is still pending.
“We know the size of the underground water catchment area. We know what needs to be protected. But the pressure to act for competing uses is great.”
Alfred Lanfervoß, department head of the TWV–
Drinking water for half of the population of Würzburg
“We know the size of the underground water catchment area. We know what needs to be protected. But the pressure to act for competing uses is great,” says Alfred Lanfervoß from the TWV. Joachim Meinhardt, geologist and private expert for geothermal energy, considers the expansion of the water protection area to be urgently necessary in view of the planned projects in the west of Würzburg. He says: “It is a provision for the future. We must also secure the water for future generations.” Because southwest of Würzburg, between Zell am Main and Altertheim, there are rich groundwater flows. Every drop of water from this area flows in the direction of the Zell spring tunnel, says Meinhardt.
The springs near Zell am Main have been bubbling for over 100 years. They supply half the population of the city of Würzburg with drinking water, around 65,000 people. The drinking water wells of the rural districts of Waldbrunn and Altertheim are also located in the underground water catchment area.
Municipalities fear stricter requirements and higher costs
Everyone wants clean drinking water, but not the planned huge drinking water protection area west of Würzburg in its dimensions. The sanctuary would be expanded from seven to 66 square meters, making it ten times larger than it is now. The district communities of Helmstadt, Altertheim, Waldbrunn, Eisingen, Waldbüttelbrunn, Höchberg, Hettstadt, Greußenheim, Zell am Main and the community of Großrinderfeld in the Main-Tauber district fear stricter requirements and higher costs.
“It is a provision for the future. We must also secure the water for future generations.”
Joachim Meinhardt, geologist of the TWV–
Interventions in the subsoil, sewage treatment plants, roads, industrial areas, geothermal energy, wind power or agriculture would be impossible or only possible under certain conditions if they endanger drinking water production, depending on the situation. A special permit is not required for a single-family home. However, for the planned route of the B26n between Hettstadt and Greußenheim or the planned line from the municipality of Kist to the new sewage treatment plant in Waldbüttelbrunn.
So is it really necessary to designate the entire subterranean water catchment area of the Zell springs as a drinking water protection area? This is not common in Bavaria. While in Baden-Württemberg around 30 percent of the state area is designated as water protection areas, in Bavaria it is just five percent. But the geologists from TWV and the water management office are convinced that it is necessary in this case.
Almost 60 percent of the soil layers have little protective function
Because in the water catchment area of the Zell springs, only about ten percent of all soil layers offer sufficient protection for the groundwater. Almost 60 percent of the top layers have a very low to low protective function. Especially in the deep valleys, the shell limestone protects the groundwater only slightly, the seepage water can reach the groundwater within a few days. There is also a so-called fissured and karst aquifer. You can imagine this subsoil like an Emmental cheese. There the water flows with enormous speed. Pollutants that get into the groundwater can be transported further quickly.
But there are a few hurdles to overcome before the drinking water protection area can be redesignated. Once the procedure has been opened, authorities, citizens, communities, farmers and other stakeholders can comment and raise their objections. Each water protection area is associated with restrictions, ownership and usage rights are affected. The decision could now be made very quickly and be made this year – or drag on for years.
drinking water protection areas
In Bavaria there are around 3200 water protection areas (WSG). According to the Bavarian Ministry of the Environment, they cover around 5 percent of the state area with a total of around 3500 square kilometers. The largest drinking water protection area in Bavaria is that of the karst springs near Ranna (Nuremberg water supply) with 78.8 square kilometers.
Lower Franconian has around 500 water protection areas. The largest is currently that of Stadtwerke Bad Kissingen with an area of 39.7 square kilometers, the smallest is an area in Lohr am Main with around 7880 square meters.
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