According to the administrative court of Lüneburg, the supply of water from the heath to the city of Hamburg is legal.
On Monday, the judges dismissed six lawsuits that concerned a permit from the Harburg district, according to which the city-state can take groundwater from the Lüneburg Heath for a period of 30 years.
Around 12 to 13 percent of Hamburg's needs are met from the heather.
Lüneburg - (AZ .: 6 A 171/19, 6 A 174/19, 6 A 226/19 to 6 A 229/19)
The lawsuits concerned the ecological consequences and the question of whether the Hanseatic city gets too much or even too little groundwater.
In the proceedings, the Hamburg waterworks are opposing the so-called elevated permit granted in 2019 for 30 years in the Harburg district and would like to obtain a permit that is more difficult to revoke.
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The new application amounts to a maximum annual volume of 18.4 million cubic meters.
The Harburg district approved an average annual water withdrawal of 16.1 million cubic meters.
32 wells are currently active for this purpose, and Hamburg Wasser would like to commission another five near Schierhorn in Nordheide.
Based on the expert opinion, among other things, the chamber came to the conclusion that the permission granted was not objectionable.
It could be ruled out with sufficient certainty that existing protected areas such as the Lüneburg Heath and the waters in the extraction area would be impaired, it said.
The action brought by the Hamburg waterworks was also dismissed.
The district of Harburg must be able to withdraw consent in the event of changes in the law or in the event of unforeseeable developments due to climate change.
The quantity limitation is also not objectionable, among other things because the experts from Hamburg Wasser also assumed a regular demand of 16.1 million cubic meters of water per year and the water demand should only increase until 2025 and then decrease again.
The Hamburg waterworks can now turn to the Lower Saxony Higher Administrative Court.
dpa