Lusatia water reservoirs support Spree River levels amid drought

In response to persistent drought and critically low river levels, water management authorities in the Lusatia region are drawing upon extensive mining reservoirs to support vital waterways. The Lusatia and Central German Mining Administration Company (LMBV) is actively releasing water from its storage facilities to bolster the Spree River's flow.

Specifically, water is currently being discharged from the Lohsa II reservoir, located in Saxony, to sustain the Spree's downstream levels. Additionally, five lakes within the "Restlochkette" chain, situated near the border between Saxony and Brandenburg, are being utilized to support the now-dry Schwarze Elster river. This strategic release of water aims to mitigate the severe impacts of the ongoing dry conditions on the regional ecosystem and water supply.

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Water from the reservoirs of the post-mining landscape in Lusatia is also used to support the levels in the Spree downstream in times of great drought.

These efforts are part of a larger water management strategy involving the LMBV's mining lakes. Last year alone, a significant volume of 82 million cubic meters of water was channeled from these post-mining lakes and remediation sites into various rivers. The Spree River benefited substantially, receiving 44 million cubic meters from the two largest LMBV reservoirs. In return, 61 million cubic meters of water were drawn from the rivers for the "flooding and aftercare of the post-mining lakes," a figure that represents a 30 percent decrease compared to the previous year, according to the LMBV.

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To support the Spree, water is currently being released from the Lohsa II reservoir located in Saxony.