In hot summers, drinking water is scarce in the high forest. According to conservationists, this is not only due to climate change, but also to the large amount of water required by some industrial companies.
It’s September 9th, 2022. The thermometer shows 26 degrees in Thalfang am Erbeskopf, it hasn’t rained for weeks. And in Official Journal of the Association of Municipalities appears an “urgent appeal” to the citizens.
They shouldn’t wash their cars, water their lawns, or fill their pools. “We ask you to contribute to maintaining a secure drinking water supply through your own behavior,” the text says. It’s not even private households that use the most water.
The municipality of Thalfang struggles with severe drought in the summer.
SWR
Maximilian Storr
“More than half of our drinking water goes to just three major consumers.”
“More than half of our drinking water goes to just three major consumers,” says Christian Synwoldt, who sits on the municipal council for the Greens.
The Hochwald Foods dairy and the two mineral water companies Hochwald Sprudel and Sankt Nikolaus Quelle together pump out almost 350,000 cubic meters of water. These figures from the waterworks were presented in various committees of the VG Thalfang.
350,000 cubic meters – that’s about 115 Olympic swimming pools and around 20,000 cubic meters more than all Thalfanger citizens together. The companies use the water to rinse halls, equipment and bottles.
Engineer Christian Synwoldt is concerned about how water is handled in the community of Thalfang.
SWR
Christian Altmayer
Problem: Thalfang obtains water primarily from springs
There was enough water for all of this for a long time. But as a result of climate change, the resource is slowly becoming scarce in the high forest. Tobias Schütz, junior professor of hydrology at the University of Trier, conducts research in the region and knows the reasons for the drought.
In winter, says the scientist, less and less snow falls, which could melt and feed the groundwater. The problem exists in many low mountain ranges.
Tobias Schütz is a professor at the University of Trier, where he heads the hydrology department.
Tobias Schuetz
Springs pour out less water
In Thalfang, however, the water loss is affecting the drinking water supply faster than elsewhere, according to the state water authority, the Structural and Approval Directorate North.
This is because the municipality obtains its water primarily from springs and not from deep wells. While the deep water reacts rather slowly to the changed climate, the springs in the high forest are already pouring out around a quarter less than ten years ago.
There is trouble about the water in the Hunsrück-Hochwald National Park. This is under protection, but two sparkling water companies want to drill new springs there. And that causes controversy.
Storage is not enough: Thalfang gets water from the Saarland
As a result, the community of Thalfang depends on drips from other communities during dry summers. When the storage tanks run empty, they are also supplied via a connecting line from the Primstal dam near Nonnweiler in Saarland. 600 cubic meters of water can be pumped out here per day.
The Nonnweiler dam association is seeing increasing interest in water from the Primstal dam. The reservoir also supplies neighboring high forest communities.
SR
“It can happen at any time that no more water comes out of the tap.”
But engineer Christian Synwoldt fears that at some point this will no longer be enough: “It can happen at any time that no more water comes out of the tap.”
And hydrologist Tobias Schütz also says: “Such a reservoir will eventually reach its limits.” Synwoldt therefore calls for better water management. At the moment, too much is simply being consumed – for example by the three companies Hochwald Foods, Hochwald Sprudel and Sankt Nikolaus Quelle.
The Hochwald dairy is the largest water consumer in the Thalfang community.
SWR
Maximilian Storr
Nikolaus Quelle Malborn saves water when cleaning bottles
But is there still potential for companies to save water? Only the sparkling water manufacturer Nikolaus Quelle in Malborn answered our questions. A spokesman said the family business uses water “carefully”, “efficiently” and “responsibly” and gives some examples.
“In the last few years we have been able to more than halve the water consumption for bottle cleaning.”
In 2018, for example, the company invested in a new bottle cleaning machine that requires very little fresh water. The excess water is also used for rinsing the crates. “This has enabled us to more than halve the water consumption for bottle cleaning in recent years,” writes the company.
According to a spokesman for the company, the Nikolaus spring in Malborn uses water as a resource very carefully.
SWR
Christian Altmayer
Water Authority: No evidence of wastage
The other two companies, however, left the SWR request unanswered. However, the state water authority reports on request: “The SGD Nord is not aware of any indications that water is wasted there.”
Mayor Vera Höfner (CDU) also does not comment in detail: “Basically, all consumers can save drinking water. Large customers can do this primarily through the efficient use and recycling of the water used in internal processes.”
The drought is also affecting the high forest. The trees can hardly defend themselves against the bark beetle.
SWR
Maximilian Storr
The community of Thalfang is working on solutions
Prescribing companies to save – the association obviously doesn’t think much of that. The issue is still taken seriously at City Hall. “The provision of drinking water for the population is part of the public service and should be prioritized,” Mayor Höfner continues.
The Verbandsgemeinde is therefore also working on solutions to prevent emergencies like last summer.
Drought and pollutants threaten the drinking water in Rhineland-Palatinate. A plant manager from the Eifel explains what needs to be done to secure the supply.
New water reservoirs could be built
It is currently being examined whether Thalfang could also be connected to other network systems. In addition, the existing pipeline network has been monitored and maintained more intensively for several months. A lot of water is also lost here through leaks and burst pipes. Höfner also considers the construction of new water reservoirs to be conceivable.
Hydrologist Tobias Schütz goes even further. Reservoirs shouldn’t be taboo in the region either: “Such projects have of course always been highly controversial in the past.” But the water has to come from somewhere, according to the hydrologist.
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