General guideline climate change

Raising temperature in the future is only one of the symptoms of the predicted climate change. The raising temperature will have consequences to the water cycle as well. For example more precipitation causes more rainfall-runoff and probably higher or longer overflows of the sewer systems with consequences for the receiving water.

The Emschergenossenschaft is mainly responsible for wastewater collection and treatment, water protection and flood control in the Emscher catchment. Many of these activities are affected by the predicted climate change. Thus it is necessary for the Emschergenossenschaft to know about the consequences of climate change for its field of activities and to take the right measures face these change processes.

Therefore EG will establish a guideline climate change for there own acting.

The First step in the guideline is to explain the coherences of climate change, water cycle and activities of the Emschergenossenschaft in a simple way to involve also non scientists. Furthermore the following questions have to be answered:

• What are the main effects of climate change a water board is affected by?

• Which of the present activities of a water board help to reduce the negative affects of climate change?

• What else is to do to decrease these affects (mitigation) or to adapt to the consequences on the water cycle?

The results of the guidelines climate change of the Emschergenossenschaft will be a big part of the water component of the climate assessment method for Future Cities.