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Lusatia's water crisis: Experts call for urgent solutions to secure the future
Cottbus discusses structural change in the water industry. Experts emphasize the challenges posed by the coal phase-out.
Lusatia's water crisis: Experts call for urgent solutions to secure the future
On March 27, 2025, the event “Structural change in the water management of Lusatia” took place in Cottbus. The conference was organized by the Wasser-Cluster-Lausitz e.V., the Cottbus Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Brandenburg Technical University Cottbus-Senftenberg. Around 170 participants were on site, while another 100 tuned in online from home and abroad, which underlines the relevance of the topic.
The opening speech was given by Prof. Gesine Grande from the BTU, who pointed out the major challenges that the topic of water brings with it. She emphasized the importance of scientific knowledge in finding solutions. André Fritsche from the IHK Cottbus emphasized that water is not only a resource, but also an important location factor for companies. He called for sustainable solutions in water management by 2038.
Water management challenges
The highest water authorities in Berlin, Brandenburg and Saxony also took part in the event to discuss the water management challenges from their perspective. Britta Behrendt, State Secretary in the Berlin Ministry of the Environment, made the connection between the coal phase-out and water supply and called for the federal government to be more closely involved in this issue.
As part of the conference, Dr. Claus Gerhard Bannick from the Federal Ministry for the Environment gave a lecture on the innovative real-world laboratory center for water and wastewater technology. He spoke about the challenges that arise particularly in wastewater treatment. The panel discussion addressed the realignment of management structures for post-mining lakes and highlighted the need for an interdisciplinary approach.
Long-term perspectives
The study “Water economic consequences of the lignite phase-out in Lusatia” provides an important basis for the discussion. This study, which was carried out by the BTU Water Management Institute, examines developments up to 2100 and shows a sharp decline in water flow in the Spree due to the coal phase-out. In addition, changes in water quantity and water quality are analyzed and challenges that need to be addressed holistically are identified. To this end, cross-border preferred variants should be developed, planned and implemented in order to formulate adequate recommendations for action and discuss alternative suggestions, such as Umweltbundesamt.de explained.
Important dates have already been announced for interested participants in the future. The 4th Lausitz Water Conference will take place on March 26, 2027, and the 3rd Cross-State Water Congress will be held in Berlin on May 12 and 13, 2025. Ingolf Arnold from Wassercluster Lausitz e.V. and Dorit Köhler from the IHK Cottbus are available for further information.
This event and the associated topics illustrate how important it is to deal comprehensively with water management in order to sustainably overcome the challenges of the future. The structural change in Lusatia requires not only current but also future-oriented approaches.