In light of the current drought, the Lower Water Authority of the Chemnitz City Environment Agency is appealing to all residents of Chemnitz to refrain from drawing water from streams. Even small amounts of water drawn can have adverse effects on the ecology of watercourses. Such water abstraction is no longer covered by the rights of adjacent residents, property owners or public use, and is therefore not permitted, even without a general ban on abstraction having been imposed.
As has been the case on several occasions in recent years, water levels in Chemnitz’s watercourses are once again very low due to the persistent drought, strong sunshine and the associated exceptionally high temperatures. The State Flood Centre currently reports a discharge of less than 100 l/s at the Harthau gauge on the Würschnitz. Water levels and discharges are also very low on the Chemnitz and Zwönitz rivers.
Higher water temperatures and falling water levels – or even sections of watercourses drying up completely – are causing the death of aquatic micro-organisms as well as fish. Furthermore, the oxygen content of the water is falling, which reduces the water bodies’ self-purification capacity. If, in this situation, residents continue to withdraw water from these watercourses, the drought situation will be further exacerbated.
For enquiries regarding current water legislation, the Lower Water Authority of the Environment Agency can be contacted by telephone on 0371-4883601 or by email at umwelt.wasser(at)stadt-chemnitz.de.
www.chemnitz.de/wasser