«Lebendige Luppe » (Living Luppe)
About this good practice
The project is a response to historical human stream and flood interventions, which negatively impacted wetlands and biodiversity. The project aims to revitalize former stream courses, protect oxbow lakes, and conserve floodplain biodiversity. The project’s purpose is to counteract the conditions that have led to a lack of water in the floodplain and to provide these once regularly flooded areas with new and vital lifelines.
This led to modernization of the water-intake river structure so that needed water could be supplied to the water ponds, depending on the requirements of the flora & fauna. Another goal of the project is awareness raising to the importance of the floodplain and related ecosystem services to both people and nature. This adds public relations (PR) and environmental education as well as natural scientific monitoring and socio-scientific research to the project.
The project is administered by the Office of Urban Greenery and Water in Leipzig. The cities of Leipzig and Schkeuditz and NABU Sachsen are in charge of the planning, building and floodplain development concept, scientifically accompanied by University of Leipzig and Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research. PR and environmental education are done by NABU Sachsen.
The group of beneficiaries is broad, as riparian forests and areas are a habitat for several species and offer ecosystem services for improvement of air, soil and water quality, wood supply as well as recreational purposes.
Resources needed
Financial volume: 22,678,000€, funded by Federal Agency for Nature Conservation with funding from the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety, Saxon Foundation for Nature and the Environment; funding as part of the federal Biological Diversity Programme
Evidence of success
Results contribute to public education efforts, fostering ecological awareness. In 2023, the Elster basin intake was repaired, allowing a flow of 500liters/s. Measures on «Burgauenbach» led to spring flooding, benefiting the alluvial forest. Since 2013, research shows positive trends in amphibian populations, e.g. for the fire-bellied toad as key species. The reappearance of the great crested newt reflects improved wetland conditions.
Potential for learning or transfer
The purpose of the “Lebendige Luppe” project is to counteract the conditions that have led to a lack of water in the floodplain and to provide these once regularly flooded areas with new and vital lifelines. It is hoped that this work will be a foundation for future, complimentary revitalization projects and measures which will also promote and further the creation of dynamic water systems, typical of floodplains.
A potential learning field for other regions can be the cooperation of stakeholders with each of them having specific objectives like the scientific monitoring or the educational mission, but all with the purpose of a sustainable and longlasting revitalization of the area.
Another learning possibility is the exemplary application of the EU Council Directive on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (92/43/EWG), adapted as Fauna-Flora-Habitat-Richtlinie in Germany. It is the foundation of the project planning of Lebendige Luppe and its sub-projects.
Further information
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