Facts: Irrigation bans introduced
Municipalities that have introduced irrigation bans:
Norsjö, Lycksele, Värmdö, Skinnskatteberg, Munkfors, Orust, Mellerud, Götene, Vara, Mjölby, Åtvidaberg, Härryda, Kungsbacka, Nässjö, Eksjö, Vetlanda, Sävsjö, Värnamo, Ljungby, Halmstad, Laholm, Borgholm, Emmaboda, Östra Göinge, Bromölla , Kristianstad, Skurup and Vellinge.
Municipalities that have introduced irrigation bans in parts of the municipality:
Haparanda, Falun, Årjäng, Forshaga, Falun, Hedemora, Östhammar, Norrtälje, Gnesta, Nyköping, Gotland, Högsby, Karlskrona and Eslöv.
Hot summers in combination with high tourist pressure have led to periods in which tankers with water had to drive between different parts of Simrishamn municipality.
“Water consumption increases by over 60 percent during the summer, so it’s quite a big difference,” says Jessica Lerstorp, operations manager at the municipal company Österlen VA.
Pumps break
The Swedish groundwater levels are feared to continue falling in the coming months and to be at unusually low levels in large parts of the country, according to Sweden’s Geological Survey (SGU).
It is mainly in the southern and central parts of the country that the levels are expected to be low. Areas that attract tourists are extra sensitive because increased tourism means increased water consumption.
— Our facilities for supplying drinking water have a certain capacity, and if the water consumption becomes too high, the pressure becomes too high for the facilities, which means that water pipes may become depressurized, pumps may break or that the groundwater inflow to the wells cannot keep up, says Jessica Lerstorp.
Groundwater levels are feared to be at unusually low levels this summer. Restrictive with pools
At the beginning of June, the municipality issued a general call for sustainable water use.
“It was an initial request that we might let the lawns turn a little yellow, and be a little more restrictive with filling pools and so on,” says Jessica Lerstorp and continues:
— If you have to water, you can do it late in the evening and early in the morning when the air is humid. Then plants absorb the water better. You also don’t need to water the lawn because it recovers when it rains. Then it’s about raising awareness of sustainable water use so that you don’t leave the tap running and maybe take a quick shower instead of a bath.
Critical periods
TT: Did you see any effect after the call?
– We still saw a small effect and then there was a little rain. Water consumption increased over the midsummer weekend again, but we managed and now we see that it is decreasing.
The municipality’s call: If you have to water, you can do it late in the evening and early in the morning when the air is humid. Then plants absorb the water better. Archive image.
At the end of July, the most critical period begins. Then many move down to their summer residences in Österlen. The hope is that the general call will be enough, otherwise an irrigation ban may become relevant.
— It wouldn’t be the first time. So we’ll obviously be following this closely. If water consumption becomes too high or if there are long periods of drought combined with groundwater reservoirs that do not recover, we may have to introduce a more widespread irrigation ban.