Water conservation

As water conservation is defined as the totality of efforts, the waters ( coastal waters, surface waters and groundwater ) to protect against harm.

The water pollution control has several purposes:

• Pollution of the water for drinking or industrial water;
• Protection of aquatic (ie dependent on the water ) ecosystems as part of the task of nature conservation.

Water protection is therefore partly a use basis, partly detached operated by user interests. Between these orientations may lead to conflicts. In terms of groundwater, he is closely linked to the soil protection. Groundwater pollution as one aspect of pollution represents a serious problem

Closely connected as special cases are the marine and wetland protection.

Causes of water pollution

In surface waters

• Scale introduction of pollutants from the air
• From accidents in industry or transport pollutants released (eg, tanker accidents, breakdowns or major fires in industrial plants )
• Pesticides
• The discharge of untreated sewage

In groundwater

• The water-soluble or liquid ingredients illegally dumped waste from private households, industrial and commercial
• Waste water from leaky sewer pipes
• Excessive fertilization of fields with manure and slurry mainly composed of factory farming
• In industrial or commercial establishments intentionally or unintentionally released pollutants (eg through undiscovered pipeline leakage, negligent behavior of company employees, workplace accidents, in earlier times also due to lack of awareness of the problem )

Effects of water pollution

Today you can hardly surface groundwater use for drinking water, as the Drinking Water Ordinance requires that, among others, not more than 50 mg nitrate / liter in drinking water must be detectable. Therefore, deeper groundwater resources always be used for drinking water.

Measures for water pollution control

The water pollution control is performed with the aim to minimize the effects of human uses of the water and its surrounding areas to an acceptable level. In the European Union, the achievement of good ecological status is defined as the goal of water quality and thus of water conservation by the Water Framework Directive. At national level, this task is especially the water right. However, other laws from the field of environmental law have water protection goal, especially the Federal Pollution Control Act, which prescribes industrial plants the application of the prior art. The prior art is synonymous with " best available techniques " (BAT ), which are published by the European Union in BREFs and binding " BAT conclusions ".

Measures of water pollution can be:

• Appropriate agricultural management, for example by preventing erosion, manure analyzes and fertilizer and pesticide minimization, reduction of nutrient surpluses by red fescue undersown in maize fields
• Prevention of water pollution by avoiding the use water or environmentally hazardous substances.
• Reduction of the entry of water-hazardous and environmentally hazardous substances by their retention at source (eg during operation by filters, flocculation, biological wastewater treatment, activated carbon, etc. ).
• Measures for wastewater discharge and treatment in a wastewater treatment plant.
• Proper waste disposal.
• Prevention and control of accidents and incidents, for example through proper storage of water and environmentally hazardous substances as well as by Löschwasserrückhaltung.
• Help with purges of waters
• Refer to protective areas for plants and animals on the lake / river
• Keep the banks and embankments clean
• Do not waste water
• If possible, use rainwater
• Use eco-friendly detergents and cleaning products
• Tilt no oil or grease into the water

The monitoring of water status and water development is called water monitoring.

General goals for the protection of groundwater

Groundwater is an essential element of the ecosystem. It is part of the water cycle and has important ecological functions. Groundwater is the main source of drinking water in Germany. The ground water must therefore be largely protected from contamination. Therefore has the following general objectives for groundwater protection:

• Groundwater must be protected from contamination or other adverse change in its properties and to obtain in its natural texture.
• The management of groundwater must be consistent with the balance of nature.
• Groundwater is precautionary and coverage to protect.
• Measure of quality is its anthropogenic largely unaffected nature.

Importance of water conservation

In the 1970s, the Rhine was a body of water with heavy organic pollution in Dusseldorf. The result was a low oxygen content. Also the Neckar near Ludwigsburg had an enormous O2 deficit and a high concentration of sewage fungi. Rhine and Neckar were in the 1970s as " cesspools of the nation." The water of the Rhine and Neckar got the late 1970s, given the water quality class IV, while today both rivers and most other rivers in Germany close to drinking water quality have (class II ).

Most dramatic was the pollution of the waters in the GDR. The GDR had a total of 90,000 kilometers of rivers and streams. 46 percent of the 11,000 km in 1990 no longer suitable due to their organic, hygienic and salt load for a bath use, not for a simple preparation in the industry and certainly not for drinking water supply. After the reunification was achieved through the construction of new sewage treatment plants and the termination particularly polluting production process, the water quality of the rivers in the West.

Today, the ongoing monitoring programs of river monitoring in Baden- Württemberg include careful bio -physical and physico- chemical studies. They constantly monitor the water quality of rivers and stagnant waters and mark them with so-called water quality classes.