Overview
- Since early June several counties and the Region Hannover have issued local bans or conditional prohibitions on pumping water from rivers, streams and other surface waters for garden and field irrigation.
- Region Hannover uses a temperature trigger from 1 June to 30 September that bans irrigation between 11:00 and 17:00 when the Langenhagen station records at least 27°C, while places like Landkreis Böblingen have fixed-date bans running from 1 June to the end of September.
- Authorities have stepped up checks and treat violations as administrative offences, with fines that in some jurisdictions can reach up to €50,000 for serious or repeated breaches.
- Most rules include targeted exceptions, such as using stored rainwater from cisterns, watering individual trees or beds, closed-loop private pools, livestock troughs and certain water-saving agricultural methods, and private wells may face similar or stricter limits.
- Water management and enforcement are handled locally so residents should consult their municipal or county Untere Wasserbehörde or Umweltamt for exact rules and prepare for wider or stricter measures and shifts toward drought‑tolerant gardening if rains do not come.