Institut für ökologische Chemie, Pflanzenanalytik und Vorratsschutz
The agricultural landscape of northeastern Germany is characterized by a dense network of drainage systems consisting of ditches and subsurface drainage pipes, which were established in the mid-20th century to remove excess water from fields and make them suitable for crop cultivation. Due to ongoing climate change, the regional landscape water balance is also changing significantly, and increased precipitation during the winter months as well as greater drought during the summer months are having a negative impact on agricultural yields.One way to counteract this is through the targeted management of runoff via ditch damming. The project investigates the effects this has on the transport of nutrients and pesticides from the cropland into the drainage ditches and their subsequent processing in water bodies.
Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Regional Identity
