Abstract
<p>Geophysical Research Abstracts<br>Vol. 12, EGU2010-10768, 2010<br>EGU General Assembly 2010<br>© Author(s) 2010<br>Development of adaptation strategies of marshland water management to<br>regional climate change<br>Helge Bormann (1), Ahlhorn Frank (2), Giani Luise (3), Klaassen Kirsten (3), and Klenke Thomas (2)<br>(1) University of Oldenburg, Department for Biology and Environmental Sciences, Hydrology, Oldenburg, Germany<br>(helge.bormann@uni-oldenburg.de, +49 441 798 3769), (2) University of Oldenburg, COAST, (3) University of Oldenburg,<br>Department for Biology and Environmental Sciences, Soil Science<br>Since many centuries, low lying areas at the German North Sea coast are intensively managed by water boards and<br>dike boards. Sophisticated water management systems have been developed in order to keep the water out of the<br>low lying areas in wet periods, while in some regions additional water is needed in dry periods for agricultural and<br>ecological purposes. For example in the Wesermarsch region, a water management system has been developed in<br>historical times, draining the landscape in winter time by means of channels, ditches, gates, sluices and pumping<br>stations. In contrast, in summer time water is conducted from Weser River into the Wesermarsch region to serve<br>watering of animals, fencing grazing areas and ensuring a continuous flow in the marsh watercourses. Doing so,<br>maintaining soil fertility is guaranteed for agriculture as well as protection against floods, sustaining river ecology<br>and traditional livestock farming. Due to climate variability and river engineering, the water management of the<br>Wesermarsch already runs into problems because watering in summer cannot be assured any longer in sufficient<br>water quality. During high tides, salt water from the North Sea is flowing upstream into the Weser estuary,<br>generating brackish conditions in the lower Weser River. In addition, soil subsidence and soil mineralization of<br>marsh and peat soils as well as the sea level rise increase the necessary pumping frequency and the emerging<br>energy costs. The expected future climate change will further aggravate those problems and require an adaptation<br>of the current management system.<br>This presentation introduces the concept behind and preliminary results of an integrative and participatory project,<br>aiming at the development of a new water management strategy adapted to the regional climate change likely to<br>occur until year 2050. In close cooperation with a number of regional stakeholders and based on the priorities<br>with respect to the future development of the region, alternative strategies for a future water management were<br>developed. They are based on the stakeholder’s picture of their future landscape, describing how the region<br>should look like in year 2050, considering the landscape in general as well as socioeconomic aspects such<br>as land use, employment market and tourism. And they are also based on guiding principles of future water<br>management on which all stakeholders agreed. In comparison with the list of potential measures suggested by<br>regional stakeholders, a concept is presented which was developed by a group of international water management<br>experts from Netherlands, UK, Sweden and Belgium in the framework of a project workshop of the EU-Interreg<br>IVb ‘Climate Proof Areas’ project. This comparison highlights the impact of setting certain boundary conditions<br>of a future development, i.e. the sustainable development of the future landscape versus keeping the landscape<br>and its cultural heritage as it is now, for example by maintaining the traditional farming system as fundamental<br>precondition for the climate adaptation process. Setting these priorities governs the decision making process and<br>decides whether the focus is set on technical adaptation measures in contrast to alternative land use concepts for a<br>region.</p>