Drinking water as a provisioning service in schleswig-holstein
Document Type:Research Paper
Subject Area:Other
With these regards, it is then important to have appropriate nutrient reduction measures for the E-U Water Framework Directive to be achieved. Nitrogen (N) and Phosphorous (P) from urban settings and emissions from farming practices contribute significantly to the degradation of water quality in many European Union countries. Studies have indicated that both inland water bodies and bays have been degraded by nutrient pollution which eventually causes eutrophication in water bodies and this may affect coastal and marine ecosystems (Aloe et al. , 2014, p. As a way of protecting these water bodies, the European Union has set up and implemented several policy instruments to be followed by member countries. (…) established that about 68 percent of the total suspended solid particles in water is caused by runoff water.
In Germany, about 32 percent of the water comes from ground water and on a global scale, about one-third of the population depend on ground water as their main source of drinking water (https://www. umwelt. sachsen. de/umwelt/wasser/6649. This paper aims at developing a model based approach to identify the appropriate measures which can be used to reduce the nitrogen and phosphorous content in surface and groundwater such that the WFD can be achieved. Hence, there is a need to conduct a research to establish mechanisms through which phosphorous and nitrogen leaching to groundwater bodies and coastal water bodies can be reduced to the desired levels of about 30 – 50 %. Materials and Methods 1. Study Area Schleswig-Holstein is Germany's northernmost state. Data from BDEW (2016, p.
Bertrand et al. (2011) have established that the larger part of Schleswig-Holstein lies below 500 m above sea level and that its precipitation is variable with the city receiving a highest level of precipitation ranging between1000 to 3200 mm annually whereas the lowlands receives between 350 and 600 mm annually (ICPDR 2013, p. Previous Studies With the increased land use along many regions of the water bodies, the water quality changes leading to the changes in the welfare of human beings. Since there are no existing quality indicators, individuals cannot directly pay for the quality of water. However, the benefits of water quality to consumers as well as producers can be determined using various environmental approaches. 454) applied the RAUMIS model as a set of indicator linked to agricultural production in Weser and established that it is an indicator of nutrient surplus in water.
Concerning diffuse water pollution, (…), established that this model is a sufficient indicator of nutrient surplus in water. (…) also proposed an alternative model, GROWA which may be applied in carrying out area differentiated water balance analyses. From the application of this model, the mean of the total runoff water is modelled as a function of climate, soil, topography, geological and land use conditions of an area. (…) has also established that the WEKU model simulates the transport of nitrate and phosphorous in water bodies and that the MONERIS model can be applied to quantify nitrogen and phosphorous emissions in water bodies through different points and diffuse pathways. In the first step, to get the cost of reducing the nutrient content in water bodies, nitrogen surpluses and concentrations are calculated using 2017 as the baseline scenario in which the baseline scenario to the average N-surpluses is expected to decline to 70 kg N per ha UAA by approximately nine kilograms per ha.
On average, this is a reduction from the 2003 baseline scenario of 40 mg nitrate per liter to 30 mg nitrate per liter by the year 2015 in groundwater bodies in the region. Other results from the model showed that other parts in the whole Germany such as the Weser river region have higher concentrations of above 50 mg nitrate per liter and that nitrogen and phosphorous emissions into water bodies was above 75. 700t/a. In contrast to 2003, the 2015 estimates showed a 17 percent reduction of nutrient emissions into the water bodies. From the analysis, it is estimated that about 5500 tons of nitrogen must be reduced from the surface to attain the EU-WFD by the year 2027. This percentage implies that it about 23000 ha must be reduced from the current surface water bodies to achieve the targets for surface water and this will require a funding of about 20 million euros.
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