Climate change meets Lower Saxony: Smart drainage for our fields!

Climate change meets Lower Saxony: Smart drainage for our fields!

Drebber, Deutschland - Extreme weather conditions are becoming more and more an issue for agriculture, and the caprioles of weather are no longer overlooked. While the primary goal was to drain wet fields quickly decades ago, the situation has now changed. Water is now more in demand than ever on the fields. In this context, a pilot project in the Diepholz district is becoming more and more a model: Here the old drainage system is being converted in order to hold back water and to derive them in a targeted manner if necessary. This future-oriented project shows how Lower Saxony's agriculture can adapt to the new climatic circumstances, as the ndr .

A new system was installed on about eight hectares of arable land at Drebber, which replaces the old drainage with a plastic tube with two openings. This enables water to be stowed up to 40 cm if the cap is closed. The water can drain off when the caps open. A significant advantage of this technology: In just half a year, around 700,000 liters of water can be kept in the ground per hectare. With the support of the Lower Saxony Ministry of the Environment, this initiative is funded and the legacy of drainage from the 50s and 1960s is revised. A third of the arable land in Lower Saxony is still equipped with these old systems.

Lower Saxony's water levels in change

Climate change not only has a direct impact on agriculture, but also affects the groundwater levels in Lower Saxony. According to a comprehensive investigation by the Lower Saxony State of Water Management, Coastal and Nature Conservation (NLWKN), the development has been showing a worrying trend since the past two decades: the groundwater levels are falling. Especially since the dry years from 2018, the regions have experienced the strongest declines, such as the

These results are part of the Klibiw research project, which is carried out by the NLWKN in cooperation with various research partners and examines the future development of the groundwater levels by the end of the 21st century. The measurement data not only show regional reductions, but also the need for sustainable water management. The final report of the project, which was published in December 2023, clearly shows that significant reductions can be expected in the future without increased climate protection measures.

A look into the future

The climate models indicate a long-term trend: longer phases with a low groundwater level in the summer and autumn months as well as higher stands in winter and spring. Such developments can deviate up to half a meter from the long-term mean values, according to the researchers' assessment, which was treated in detail in the

farmers in Lower Saxony are faced with the challenge of adapting to the climatic conditions. While in real modern e-tractors and a farmer from Gehrden plants shade-giving trees on his areas, the questions about a meaningful handling of water and the necessary adjustments in agriculture remain up to date. With innovative ideas and adaptation strategies such as the intelligent drainage systems in Drebber, however, there is a view of possible solutions.

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