Area of contribution in focus: presentation at the SPRING conference in Witten (Germany)

The 25th SPRING conference, organised by delta h Ingenieurgesellschaft GmbH, took place in Witten (North Rhine-Westphalia) at the beginning of July. Over two days, the focus was on practical and scientific contributions relating to groundwater and water balance modelling, as well as the new functions of SPRING 7 and future developments.

TK CONSULT AG was represented by Michael Ballmer with a presentation on the topic of "area of contribution to groundwater wells in Switzerland". The presentation highlighted the current situation in Switzerland, where all cantons are obliged to determine the contribution area for regionally important drinking water wells by 2035. The Swiss Water Protection Ordinance defines the contribution area as the area from which around 90 % of the groundwater drawn from a well originates. The presentation showed how this determination can be carried out in practice and what methodological approach an expert group (chair: Federal Office for the Environment) - of which TK CONSULT AG is a member - recommends. Particular attention was paid to the question of how a reliable evaluation is possible even with strongly varying flow directions.