700 euros – that’s how much less wastewater charges you pay in Worms than in Potsdam. The Nibelungenstadt has now been awarded for this. But how do you explain the considerable price differences?
According to the ranking, a family of four in Worms pays around 240 euros a year for wastewater disposal – first place. That is 700 euros less than in Potsdam, which is 100th at the bottom of the ranking. On Thursday, those responsible for the city and representatives of the waste disposal companies were presented with an award.
For the second time after 2017, the scientists examined the wastewater charges of the 100 largest cities in Germany by population. The list was drawn up by the Cologne Institute for Economic Research on behalf of the Haus & Grund owners’ association.
Rhineland-Palatinate: 240 and 400 euros for wastewater
In addition to Worms, the Rhineland-Palatinate cities of Kaiserslautern (11th place, around 370 euros), Trier (12, around 370 euros), Mainz (20, just under 400 euros) and Ludwigshafen (22, just under 400 euros) are relatively high up on. Of the 25 cities with the highest fees, 15 are in North Rhine-Westphalia. And while 81 cities have increased their fees since 2017, they have only decreased in 18, the authors conclude.
The authors added Worms to the wastewater charge ranking because the number of inhabitants rose to around 83,000 between 2015 and 2019, making the city one of the 100 most populous cities in Germany. And the number of inhabitants also had an impact on the cities, whose fees were already evaluated in 2017: “If the population density in a region falls, fresh water consumption decreases and the sewer system is less used. This increases the costs of maintaining the system then added to the wastewater charges, “explains the analysis.
Why are the differences so big?
All households in Germany produce wastewater – in the same way, for example when rinsing, draining bath water or flushing the toilet. How can it be that the same process costs twice or even three times as much in some regions as in others?
How high the wastewater charges are depends on many different factors, explains Hanno Kempermann from IW Consult, a subsidiary of the Institute for German Economy, which carried out the study. “Of course, cities have to struggle with different challenges. Some have higher costs or an old sewer network, for example.” The topographical nature of the city – whether it is hilly or flat – also plays a role: “In Wuppertal, for example, the wastewater has to be pumped uphill – of course that is a much higher burden on the wastewater network and accordingly more expensive.”
The size and structure of the city is also an important factor: In large urban areas, long distances have to be overcome and therefore large sewer networks have to be maintained. But the sometimes enormous differences, says Kempermann, cannot be attributed to different conditions alone. “There are adjusting screws that could be turned – for example the cross-subsidization that takes place in some cities.”
Worms: The relationship is right
Kempermann states that the basic idea behind the ranking is that consumers can understand how fees are generated: “With water, as a citizen, you have little room for maneuver and you cannot simply change providers.”
Why are the wastewater charges in the city of Worms so low? “The utilization of the wastewater treatment plant is good – and that makes a lot of difference because it is an important factor in the breakdown of costs,” says Kempermann. The relationship between the amount of waste water produced and the capacity of the sewage treatment plant must be correct. And Gordon Gross, speaker of the Haus & Grund association, explains: “There are many indications that the city and the sewage company work efficiently and only pass on the costs to the citizens that are really necessary.”
The wastewater charge ranking is intended to help consumers as well as administrations and politicians to recognize the reasons for the enormous differences and, in some cases, very high costs. The authors of the study understand the results as a basis for discussions and further, more detailed investigations. From the point of view of the Haus & Grund association, the city of Worms is doing a lot right. And Angela Zimmermann from the city’s press office confirms: “There is no cross-subsidization of other areas from wastewater charges in Worms.”
A visit to the Koblenz sewage works (archive video from 2016)
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