Cologne is planning the greatest flood protection in North Rhine -Westphalia: Citizens are skeptical!

Cologne is planning the greatest flood protection in North Rhine -Westphalia: Citizens are skeptical!

In North Rhine-Westphalia, an important project to improve flood protection is currently being realized. The planned retention room Worringen in Cologne will be one of the largest flood areas in the federal state with an area of 670 hectares and is intended to relieve the dike and protect the surrounding residential areas in the north of Cologne from flooding. Land NRW reports that the capacity of the area is around 30 million cubic meters of water.

On Friday, March 14, 2025, NRW Environment Minister Oliver Krischer will be handed over to the planning approval decision to the Cologne city drainage. The event begins at 12 p.m. in the flood pumping station in Cologne. Important personalities such as the mayor of the city of Cologne, Henriette Reker, and the district president of the district government of Cologne, Dr. Thomas Wilk will also be on site. Participants can register at press@munv.nrw.de.

project scope and investments

With more than 200 million euros, the federal and state governments invest considerably in the flood protection project. According to the simulations, the area, which is to be controlled with extreme flood events over a level of 11.70 meters, could lower the flood tips on the Rhine by up to 17 centimeters. According to experts, such extreme high -weather conditions appear about once in 200 years. WDR emphasizes that forests, meadows and dikes have already been created in Cologne-Worringen, and construction work for further dike and flood protection walls should begin.

Despite these progress, there is resistance to the project in the population. Citizens have concerns about their security, especially since access road B9 could also be flooded. A citizens' association has brought a proposal to make the area smaller to take into account the concerns of the residents.

background for flood protection

The need for such measures is underlined by the experiences of the flood events in July 2021 and the progressive changes through climate change. How the Federal Government shows that technical flood protection alone does not offer absolute security. A comprehensive flood risk-taking strategy is sought in order to be better up to the challenges of heavy rain and drought.

The Federal Government also launched an immediate program for climate adjustment with financial support for municipalities. The strategy focuses on sustainable urban and regional planning, renaturation, as well as the connection of meadows and rewetting of bogs in order to continue to be prepared for extreme weather events in the future.