Large construction project in Esch: protection against floods from 2024!

Large construction project in Esch: protection against floods from 2024!

in Cologne is currently being worked on improve the drainage system. Since September 2023, the districts of Pesch, Esch and Auweiler with full enthusiasm have been in the process of undergoing the outdated system of urgently needed renovation. The new construction work takes place on the old pumping station on Martinusstraße, and a special focus is on the laying of an underground storage space channel. This new channel will replace the previous ditch trench, which has proven to be extremely poor, especially after the devastating floods in 2021.

like the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger directs directly from the pumping station to the Cologne margin. This technical progress is primarily intended to reduce the risks that could arise from heavy rain events such as those that led to massive damage in 2021.

teaching from the flood disaster

In July 2021, Germany experienced one of the worst flood disasters in its history. Over 180 people lost their lives, many more have been missing. The storm, caused by the Bernd's low pressure area, brought extreme rainy amounts of up to 150 liters per square meter within 24 hours in many regions. Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia were particularly affected.

The flood disaster has insistently demonstrated the need for improved flood protection. There have been similar events in the past, but the increase in such extreme weather situations is obvious. Experts emphasize that the consequences of climate change are decisive for this. The Federal Center for Political Education emphasizes that the frequency and intensity of such weather phenomena could continue to increase in the coming years.

innovative solutions

In order to be able to meet such disasters, new techniques are used in Cologne. In the current renovation, thick-walled plastic pipes are used, which are connected by a special electrical welding process without visible seams. This not only enables faster construction, but also increases the durability of the infrastructure.

District Mayor Reinhard Zöllner emphasized the importance of these measures in the symbolic groundbreaking ceremony: "We have the opportunity to make our city future -proof and to react to the fact that such extremists are increasing." The entire project has a budget of 118 million euros and is expected to be completed by 2027. The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Security has already presented a comprehensive concept for flood protection and the adaptation to climate change in the next few years.

The work in Cologne is an elementary step towards a better infrastructure and once again show how important it is to react to the climate and adapt to the circumstances. Traffic restrictions can be expected in the coming months, especially when the construction work reaches Orrer Strasse. But the long -term advantages will undoubtedly predominate.