What are Trinkwasserschutzgebiete?
Trinkwasserschutzgebiete are areas designated under §51 WHG to protect drinking water abstraction (wells, springs and reservoirs) from contamination. They are typically structured in three zones: Zone I immediately around the abstraction point (fassungsnah), Zone II protecting against microbial contamination, and Zone III covering the wider catchment. The restrictions under §52 WHG escalate toward the well. This layer unifies the designated protection areas of all 16 German states into one queryable dataset.
How legally binding are Trinkwasserschutzgebiete?
Legal status
Legally binding
This designation has direct legal effect. It can permit or prevent what you build on a site.
Trinkwasserschutzgebiete are designated by ordinance under §51 WHG; §52 WHG defines the prohibitions, use restrictions, and tolerance duties that apply within them. The zone boundaries are binding on owners, developers, and operators.
What this means for you
Restrictions escalate toward the abstraction point: Zone III limits the handling of water-hazardous substances, Zone II generally excludes construction and earthworks, and Zone I bars practically all third-party use. Violations can block permits or trigger enforcement.
What attributes do the Trinkwasserschutzgebiete data include?
Protection zone
The zone classification from Zone I (fassungsnah) to Zone III, where the state publishes it, indicating how strict the applicable restrictions are.
Name and designation
The name of the protection area and, where published, references to the designating ordinance.
Geometry
Area polygons of the designated zones, delivered as published by the state.
Bundesland
The source state of each protection area, for provenance and state-specific legal follow-up.
All 16 states publish their protection areas, but zone attribution and naming vary: some states label every zone explicitly in the geodata, others publish the overall protection area and detail the zones in the ordinance. We harmonise structure and format while keeping each state's published classification intact and traceable to its source.
What are Trinkwasserschutzgebiete data used for?
- Early red-flag detection: identify sites in Zone I or II before acquisition or design work begins.
- Portfolio screening: intersect every holding with protection areas in a single nationwide query across all 16 states.
- Due diligence: document zone membership per parcel as defensible evidence in transaction and audit reports.
- Infrastructure and drilling: check geothermal systems, pipeline routes, and earthworks against zone boundaries and §52 restrictions early.
Where do the Trinkwasserschutzgebiete data come from?
Sourced from the official geoportals and water authorities of all 16 German states, based on the designating protection ordinances.
Which German states do the Trinkwasserschutzgebiete cover?
Available for all 16 German Bundesländer. Every state publishes its designated drinking water protection areas, so the layer supports genuinely nationwide screening, from Schleswig-Holstein to Bavaria, without coverage gaps.
Coverage by federal state
- BBBrandenburgAvailable
- BEBerlinAvailable
- BWBaden-WürttembergAvailable
- BYBavariaAvailable
- HBBremenAvailable
- HEHesseAvailable
- HHHamburgAvailable
- MVMecklenburg-Western PomeraniaAvailable
- NILower SaxonyAvailable
- NWNorth Rhine-WestphaliaAvailable
- RPRhineland-PalatinateAvailable
- SHSchleswig-HolsteinAvailable
- SLSaarlandAvailable
- SNSaxonyAvailable
- STSaxony-AnhaltAvailable
- THThuringiaAvailable
Where the federal state publishes this layer, we carry it: 16 of 16 federal states today. Where it doesn't, we say so.
Coverage gap
Your region of interest isn't covered?
Coverage follows what each state and municipality has actually digitised, so there are real gaps, and they are not always where you would expect. Tell us the region and the layer you need and we will look into what can be sourced for it, including data we do not list today.
Tell us what you needHow do you get Trinkwasserschutzgebiete as GIS data?
One unified dataset: Ready for direct integration into your GIS, CAD, or BI tools. Standard formats, documented schema.
Mapular Explorer: Instant planning interface, no GIS setup required. Filter, analyse, and export from your browser.
Frequently asked questions about Trinkwasserschutzgebiete
What do protection zones I, II, and III mean?
Trinkwasserschutzgebiete are typically divided into three zones. Zone I is the immediate catchment around the well or spring (fassungsnah), where practically all third-party use is prohibited. Zone II protects against microbial contamination and largely excludes construction and earthworks. Zone III covers the wider catchment, with restrictions on water-hazardous substances. The restrictions escalate the closer you get to the abstraction point.
What is the legal basis for Wasserschutzgebiete in Germany?
Drinking water protection areas are designated under §51 WHG (Wasserhaushaltsgesetz), which authorises the states to declare protection areas by ordinance, and §52 WHG, which defines the prohibitions, restrictions, and tolerance duties that apply inside them. The designations are legally binding: violations can block permits or trigger enforcement action by the water authority.
Can you build inside a Trinkwasserschutzgebiet?
It depends on the zone. In Zone I, construction is effectively ruled out. In Zone II, building projects are generally prohibited or possible only through narrow exemptions. In Zone III, development is often feasible but subject to conditions, for example on earthworks, storage of water-hazardous substances, drainage and geothermal drilling. Identifying the zone early is therefore the decisive due-diligence step.
Does the dataset cover all German states?
Yes. Trinkwasserschutzgebiete are available for all 16 German Bundesländer as one harmonised layer. Every state publishes its designated drinking water protection areas, so nationwide portfolio screening works without gaps: a single spatial query returns the protection areas, and where published the zone classification, for any site in Germany.
Why use Wasserschutzgebiete GIS data instead of the state map viewers?
Each state's viewer answers one lookup at a time. As a harmonised GIS layer, Wasserschutzgebiete become queryable: intersect an entire portfolio in one operation, attach the results to due-diligence files, and detect red flags early. A planned site in Zone II or a logistics depot in Zone III surfaces before design work or negotiations are far advanced.
Which projects are most affected by water protection areas?
Anything that moves earth, stores substances, or discharges water: residential and commercial development, logistics and industrial sites, agriculture, road building, geothermal systems, and pipeline or grid infrastructure. Because restrictions escalate from Zone III toward Zone I, the same project can be routine in one location and unpermittable a few hundred metres away.