Does the presence of iron in the River Spree have any adverse effects on the Lusatian Lakeland?

No, this phenomenon – known as ‘brown Spree’ – does not have any effect on the lakes or the water quality in the Lusatian Lakeland. Most of the mines responsible for the iron contamination in the River Spree are in the north-west (around Spreetal) and the north-east (to the north of Schlabendorf) of the Lusatian Lakeland.

In the long term, however, similar iron contamination could occur in larger quantities in the Schwarze Elster river, which is extremely  important for the lakeland region. LMBV is already working on various measures and developments to ensure that this does not happen and that the Lusatian Lakeland remains unaffected by iron contamination in the rivers.

The LMBV has more information on the phenomenon of ‘brown Spree’ (in German only).