Thematic focus water

Using water wisely – ideas for water management in the future

Nadine Kraft | 09.01.2026

PB Päsidential Office

From rainwater storage to aquaculture: in times of increasing water scarcity and declining water quality, science is not only investigating the effects on agriculture, forests and fisheries. Researchers are presenting ideas and proposed solutions for using existing resources more efficiently. Our thematic focus brings together the knowledge of the Thünen Institute.

Tropfbewässerungssystem für den Anbau von hydroponischem Gemüse im Gewächshaus.

Droughts are becoming more frequent, groundwater levels are falling, and water demand in agriculture, industry and private households is rising. The trend over the past 20 years shows that, as a result of the climate crisis, water is becoming increasingly scarce globally, but also in Germany. This poses major challenges for agriculture and fisheries – a balanced water balance is essential for a reliable supply of healthy food. Water quality is also declining along with the water table: a low groundwater level reduces the quality of drinking water. Too many nutrient inputs pollute coastal seas such as the Baltic Sea – with direct consequences for fish stocks. In our focus topic, we bring together research results and expertise from the Thünen Institute on the subject of water.

Our scientists are conducting research into the following questions, among others:

How is water demand developing in agriculture and, in particular, in horticulture? What options are available for making better use of rainwater and irrigating fields more efficiently, for example? The results of our research serve not least as a decision-making aid for policymakers, for example in the development of funding instruments.

In forests, too, prolonged drought does not only cause trees to die. Most groundwater is formed there. In the long term, drought therefore also leads to a shortage of clean drinking water. What must the forests of the future look like in order to counteract this shortage?

In coastal seas such as the Baltic Sea, water quality suffers from excessive nutrient inputs. Oxygen levels are falling, which is exacerbated by rising water temperatures. The ecosystem is faltering and fish stocks are collapsing. Can aquaculture compensate for the quantities of wild fish that are no longer usable as a result? Can extensive aquaculture fulfil other functions, such as retaining water in the landscape while increasing biodiversity? What potential do algae and mussel farms have for improving water quality?

Without water, there is no life on Earth. At the Thünen Institute, we are researching how we can use water efficiently and protect it at the same time in the future.

Dossier

Forests and water

Forests provide more than just wood. Another forest product is much less well-known: clean water! And different forests types differ clearly in performance.

Water management in peatlands

Wet peatland soils consist of almost 98 percent water. This high water content is the reason why a lot of carbon has been stored in the peatlands over the millennia. If they are drained for agricultural use, large amounts of greenhouse gases are released to the atmosphere. Other ecosystem services also suffer from drainage. How could an alternative water management for peat soils look like?

Water availability in agriculture

Progressive climate change is increasingly influencing water availability and water requirements in agriculture. Innovative water management concepts are needed to maintain crop production and minimise conflicts of interest with other water users.

Biodiversity and migratory species

Fish species that migrate between fresh and marine waters, so-called diadromous species, are often particularly vulnerable to human impacts. They are put under pressure by river constructions and fragmentation of habitats as well as by over-fishing and climate change.

Thünen explains

The subsoil – deeply rooted in dry times

Increasing drought is threatening harvests, even in our latitudes. Where will plants get water to grow and thrive in the future? From the subsoil, for example. Unused water and nutrient reserves lie dormant there. But plants can't access them. Thünen explains shows how we can give plants access to water reserves and help protect the climate at the same time.

Podcasts

Episode 14: Can the eel still be saved?

The European eel is acutely threatened. Fishing is one of the reasons for this. While scientists have been calling for a complete ban on fishing for years as well as for the improvement of water quality and fish passage, politicians are struggling with it. What is the reason for this? And could the eel still be saved at all?

Episode 17: Untapped resources II

Long droughts, massive floods – extreme weather events are increasing in our latitudes as well. New water management strategies are needed: water from heavy rainfall and floods, for example, could be captured and stored for later dry phases. Water utilisation must also become more efficient.

Episode 18: All hands to the pump

Intact peatlands are efficient carbon reservoirs and therefore true climate protectors. If they are drained for agriculture and forestry, immense quantities of greenhouse gases escape into the atmosphere. Can paludiculture offer an alternative in the area of conflict between agriculture and climate policy?