The traffic light has changed from green to yellow. The city administration and the municipal utilities in Oberursel are appealing for water conservation.
Oberursel/Steinbach – Heat, drought, and dust have wiped out the lush green meadows and green spaces in the city after the wet May. Brown and yellow now dominate the green spaces, whether in Rushmoor Park or along Adenauerallee in Oberursel . In Steinbach, too, the lack of rain is unmistakable. Instead of urban greenery, a steppe now reigns.
Due to the lack of precipitation, the drinking water traffic lights for Oberursel and Steinbach also had to be changed from green to yellow on Thursday. This was announced by the Oberursel municipal utilities and the Steinbach water supply. An urgent appeal is made to use this vital resource sparingly. "Yellow" means that daily drinking water consumption in Oberursel and Steinbach has been close to the previous daily peak for several days and the drinking water treatment plants are operating at full capacity.
Drinking water savings in Oberursel: Advice from the municipal utilities
In addition, the supply of external water through the Taunus Water Supply Association (WBV) for Oberursel is approaching the maximum available amount. Drinking water is intended for human consumption, i.e., for food preparation, direct consumption, laundry, personal hygiene, and household cleaning.
The Oberursel municipal utilities and the Steinbach water supply therefore appeal to everyone to follow the following rules to reduce consumption: Use drinking water only when necessary. Watering gardens should be limited to a maximum of twice a week. Watering lawns should be avoided. The use of drinking water for washing vehicles, cleaning buildings, patios, or similar applications should be avoided. Filling pools, cisterns, or other water storage facilities should be avoided to ensure the continued drinking water supply in Oberursel and Steinbach.
Drinking water traffic light on yellow: Oberursel wants to prevent worse
The goal is to avoid an emergency and prevent the traffic light from turning red. The only exceptions are the limited irrigation of agricultural land and public areas by the municipal utility Bau & Service Oberursel (BSO), such as trees or sports fields. These may be watered to a reduced extent to prevent consequential damage or ensure the growth of new plantings. Current drinking water consumption in Oberursel can be viewed at www.stadtwerke-oberursel.de/Wasserampel . The color gradient from green to red is intended to encourage more sensitive drinking water use.
The phases of the drinking water traffic light are influenced by many factors, including total water volume, current water consumption, current and future weather, and peak daily consumption.
The Oberursel Construction & Service Company (BSO) has already reduced the irrigation of its sports fields. In 2020, a contingency plan was developed to reduce drinking water consumption for irrigating the sports fields, which is now being implemented. Sports fields are irrigated three times a week. However, due to limited pump capacity, only one or two irrigation systems can be operated at a time. This increases the operating time but not the amount of water used. The sports fields must continue to be irrigated to maintain the basic structure of the turf.
The municipal watering truck for young trees and new plantings is not powered by drinking water, but by water from the BSO's cisterns. Green spaces and new plantings are watered a maximum of twice a week. In addition, the BSO installed systems for the use of non-recyclable water at the wastewater treatment plant in 2021. Although the EU Water Reuse Regulation has been in force since June 26, 2021, the BSO is not yet permitted to use the treated water from the wastewater treatment plant. Other measures, such as wells, cisterns, and the use of flushing water, are planned for the future.
Despite drinking water shortages in Oberursel: Ornamental fountains remain in operation
The ornamental fountains will remain in operation despite the general call to save water, the BSO announced. This decision was made in consultation with the municipal utilities. These fountains consume little water and even have positive effects on hot days: The visible water column of the fountains partially atomizes and evaporates the water, creating evaporative cooling. This physical process, called evaporation, has a positive effect on the microclimate around the fountains, which are attractive to many people.
Each ornamental fountain operates according to the circulation principle. The pump uses water from a reservoir to generate the water column. The water that doesn't evaporate is collected in this reservoir, and the cycle begins again. Only the portion of water that evaporates needs to be refilled to prevent the pump from drying out. The city administration, the BSO (Federal Office for Water Management), the Steinbach Public Utilities (Stadtwerke), and the Steinbach Water Supply are in constant contact and can react quickly depending on the situation. (Jochen Dietz)