Ölbach (Wapelbach)

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Ölbach
The Ölbach in Verl

The Ölbach in Verl

Data
Water code DE : 31284
location North Rhine-Westphalia , Germany
River system Ems
Drain over Wapel  → Dalke  → Ems  → North Sea
source In the Senne northwest of Augustdorf
51 ° 55 ′ 16 ″  N , 8 ° 41 ′ 58 ″  E
Source height approx.  168  m above sea level NHN
muzzle Southwest of Gütersloh - Kattenstroth in the Wapel coordinates: 51 ° 52 '25 "  N , 8 ° 20' 45"  E 51 ° 52 '25 "  N , 8 ° 20' 45"  E
Mouth height approx.  72  m above sea level NHN
Height difference approx. 96 m
Bottom slope approx. 3.2 ‰
length 29.6 km
Catchment area 81.053 km²
Discharge at the Verl NNQ
MNQ
MQ
MHQ
HHQ
1 m³ / s
146 l / s
796 l / s
3.8 m³ / s
6.18 m³ / s
Right tributaries Westerholter Bach , Landerbach , Wiedey River
Communities Oerlinghausen , Holte-Stukenbrock Castle , Verl , Rietberg , Rheda-Wiedenbrück and Gütersloh

The Ölbach is a 29.6 km long right tributary of the Wapel in North Rhine-Westphalia , Germany . It rises within the East Westphalian Senne and flows in a south-westerly direction over the area of ​​the Lippe and Gütersloh districts . The body of water is part of the Ems river system and its catchment area covers 81.1 km².

River course

The Ölbach rises from three individual sources southwest of Oerlinghausen at an altitude of 165  m above sea level. NHN in the Senne in a deeply deepened box valley in the nature reserve Ölbachtal with Augustdorfer dune field . As is typical for all Senne brooks, the Ölbach follows the southwest flattening of the Teutoburg Forest in an approximately parallel course . Over the years the springs have shifted further and further down the stream, which is why a dry valley joins today above the actual source area .

After taking up the Westerholter Bach , the Ölbach first flows through the town of Schloß Holte-Stukenbrock . In Stukenbrock there is a dam in order to be able to cover ponds and backwaters, which were created in 1975 and are now partially under nature protection, for the purpose of fish farming. After crossing under the federal motorway 33 , the water flows through Holte Castle . To the west of the village there are other standing waters that are fed by the Ölbach. First there are two collecting ponds that served as a water reservoir for the former Holter ironworks. Shortly afterwards, the Ölbach reaches the Holter Castle , whose moats it also supplies with water. At this point the water has already entered the Holter Forest and shortly afterwards it passes the 1000-year-old oak tree there .

Water surface in front of the Holter Castle

The Ölbach then flows centrally through the Holter Forest and there, already in the urban area of Verl , takes on the Landerbach . Later in Verl is north flows through the village and then divided at the level of the district Sürenheide located Verler lake temporarily in an oxbow lake ( age oil Bach ) and a newer Arm ( New oil Bach ) on. Southwest of this emerged in the 1980s and is fed by the oil stream excavated lake formed by the river course in a total of 7.5 km long and exclusively rural section of the border city of Gütersloh . First of all, it is the border to the city of Verl and then to the city of Rietberg , where the Ölbach flows north past the Rietberg district of Varensell . Finally, the brook forms the border between Gütersloh and Rheda-Wiedenbrück , before it completely enters Rheda-Wiedenbrücker Boden in the area of ​​the district of Lintel at the level of the A2 flow .

Shortly after the Good Schledebrück was passed within a forest land, the oil stream from taking the right side, the 8.3 km long Spexard tapered Wiedey-river and ends shortly thereafter in Rhedaer forest in the Wapel what about the Dalke in the Ems flows.

During its course the water overcomes a height difference of 96 meters, resulting in an average bed gradient of 3.2 ‰.

Backwaters

Confluence of the Westerholter Bach (middle) and Schnakenbach (left) into the Ölbach
Confluence of the Landerbach (left)

The largest tributary of the Ölbach is the Landerbach, which is a little over eleven kilometers long and has a catchment area of ​​around 21.5 km². The Krampsbach and the Dalbkebach, which is a drain of the Menkhauser Bach and thus provides a connection between the Menkebach and the Ölbach system, flow to the Landerbach . A number of smaller, nameless streams flow to the Ölbach coming from the Holter Forest, so with the exception of the Rodenbach all flowing waters leading through the Holter Forest drain into it. The direct tributaries of the Ölbach add up to a stretch of 40.05 km. If you also include the waters leading into these streams, the result is a tributary network of 65.62 km in length.

The table below shows the tributaries of the Ölbach in the order from the source to the mouth. The parameters mentioned are the orographic position, the mouth position with indication of the stationing kilometer, the length, the size of the catchment area, the mouth height and the water body number.

Surname

location Stat.
in km
Length
in km
EZG
in km²
Mouth height
in m above sea level NHN
GKZ
Westerholter Bach right 25.7 1.568 5.683 128 31284 2
NN Left 19.1 2.958 102 31284 312
NN right 17.0 4.381 96 31284 32
NN right 16.0 1.704 94 31284 34
Landerbach right 15.0 11,392 21,464 92 31284 4
NN Left 13.8 2.473 90 31284 92
NN right 13.1 3.765 89 31284 94
Old Ölbach right 8.0 3,480 81 31284 96
Wiedey River Left 0.2 8.329 72 31284 98

Infrastructure at the Ölbach

During the entire course of the river, the European cycle path R1 and the “D-Netzroute 3”, which is congruent in this area, run along or cross the course of the Ölbach several times. In the area of ​​the Holter Forest, the BahnRadRoute Teuto-Senne and in the lower reaches near the mouth also the BahnRadRoute Hellweg-Weser have contact points with the stream.

In Schloß Holte, the Senne-Bahn ( KBS 403 ), which runs from Bielefeld to Paderborn , crosses the Ölbach, and the Gütersloh-Verl-Kaunitz-Hövelhof line of the Teutoburg Forest Railway (TWE) also crosses the water. In addition to the federal highways 2 and 33, the federal highway 61 crosses the Ölbach shortly before the confluence , as well as the former section of the federal highway 68 leading from Sennestadt to Paderborn near Stukenbrock, which was downgraded to the regional highway 756 after the completion of the A33.

geology

The Ölbach, like the neighboring flowing waters in the Senne, is the classic type of sandbach, the sediments of which were deposited in a layer up to 60 meters thick due to the influence of melt water after the Saale Ice Age . These immense amounts of sand come from the Osning sandstone from the Teutoburg Forest, which has been crushed by the ice . The Teutoburg Forest is also interspersed with a water-impermeable layer of marl , which reaches the surface within the Senne and at the edges of which the Senne brooks emerge.

While the uppermost Ölbach spring is fed by groundwater that is presumably near the surface , the lowest spring around 100 meters further downstream brings carbonate-rich deep water to the surface and leads to a reduction in water temperature of around one degree.

climate

Average rainfall in Oerlinghausen 1961–1990

The course of the Ölbach is located in the temperate climate zone of Central Europe. Due to the location in the sub-Atlantic maritime climate, a humid climate prevails all year round with relatively evenly distributed rainfall. At the measuring station in Oerlinghausen and thus in the area of ​​the sources, a long-term average of 1026 mm of precipitation falls per year. This means that there is significantly more precipitation in this area than the German average (700 mm). In Verl and thus in the middle course of the water, the long-term average precipitation is only around 770 to 830 mm, for the lower course similar values ​​apply. The high amount of precipitation in the source area is influenced by uphill rain , as the Senne is located on the southern slope of the Teutoburg Forest. These circumstances also have an effect on the flow rate of the Ölbach, which averages 636 l / s at the Verl gauge.

Due to the relatively high flow speed, the creek does not freeze over even when it is very cold; a frost-free channel in the middle of the creek bed is retained even during longer periods of frost.

environment

Water type

The course of the Ölbach can be divided into two types of watercourse : From the source to the entrance into the Verler urban area, the watercourse is considered to be a sand-shaped lowland creek (type 14), from here the creek counts as a small lowland watercourse with an increasingly wider flood plain up to its mouth River and stream valleys (type 19).

Nature reserves

One of the
Ölbach springs in the Ölbachtal nature reserve with Augustdorfer Dünenfeld

The source region of the Ölbach is located within the 169 hectare nature reserve "Ölbachtal mit Augustdorfer Dünenfeld", which extends largely over the area of the Lippe district and to a much smaller extent over the Gütersloh district . The protected area is characterized by the box valley of the stream near the source, extensive pine forests as well as isolated heather areas and the eponymous dune fields .

In the area of ​​Schloß Holte-Stukenbrock, the Holter Forest crossed by the Ölbach, with its small-scale peat soils and its importance for tree-cave-dwelling species, is a protected area on a total of 619 hectares.

The nature reserves Kipshagener Teiche in Schloß Holte and Fleckernheide in Sende are in the immediate vicinity of the stream, but do not touch it.

Flora and fauna

The Ölbach can be divided into two fish regions: up to the level of the Holter Castle, the body of water belongs to the "upper trout type (lowland)" and below this point to the "lower trout type (lowland)". A distinction is made between the two types with regard to the lower flow rate, the prevailing substrates and the different water temperatures. The main fish in both regions is the brown trout . Overall, however, the Ölbach has mostly unsatisfactory conditions for fish colonization, which is primarily due to obstacles to migration in the form of transverse structures . In contrast, the Ölbach offers very good conditions, especially in the middle and lower reaches, for organisms living on the bottom of the water, such as flea crabs or the larvae of stickies and caddis flies .

The water bat occurs primarily in the area of ​​two reservoirs in front of the fish farm in Stukenbrock for the purpose of supplying fresh water . The Schloß Holter collecting ponds and the castle moat are spawning waters of numerous amphibians, especially common frogs can be found in larger populations. Both the kingfisher and the dipper can be observed throughout the course of the Ölbach . Moisture-loving tree species such as alder and ash can be found in the immediate vicinity of the water .

Water quality

Water quality

The water quality of the Ölbach and its tributaries is impaired , among other things, by the input of substances from agriculture such as nitrates (fertilizers) and pesticides as well as high pollution from urban drainage. Metals such as zinc , copper , lead and cadmium were found in the stream water . According to the State Office for Nature, the Environment and Consumer Protection, a not inconsiderable proportion of this contamination is likely to come from rainwater . Metals can get into the water via feed lines from the road network through car traffic or tire wear; but metal roofs, gutters and industrial areas also contribute to pollution.

In the immediate source area of ​​the Ölbach there are pronounced consequences of soil acidification in the form of flocculation of aluminum that is hostile to settlement and which is released from the soil with increasing acidification. The reasons for the strong acidification of the Ölbach springs are the low buffer capacity of the carbonate- poor Senneboden against inputs from the atmosphere and the increased uptake of pollutants in the air by the pine trees typical of the site. Due to these peculiarities, the springs have served as a trend measuring point as part of the state-wide water monitoring system since 1990. However, the stream water is rapidly neutralized below the springs.

Overall, however, the water quality of the Ölbach has improved compared to the studies from 1998. While the water in this period, especially in the lower reaches, was still assigned to water quality class II-III and was therefore considered "critically polluted", according to the result from 2009, quality class II can be achieved throughout this section, which is only moderate Pollution of the stream water.

Structural quality

Straightened Ölbach north of Verl

Although the course of the Ölbach runs through predominantly rural and partly also protected areas, there is structural water damage in the entire course of the water. The structural report of the State Environment Agency North Rhine-Westphalia from 2005 identifies five different structural quality classes in the watercourse. The most significant deficits can be found in the local area of ​​Stukenbrock, as the Ölbach is piped here in sections and only flows freely in small areas. In this area, the stream is mainly assigned to quality class VII, which corresponds to a complete change and excessive damage to the water structure.

The water structure improves in the area of ​​the Holter Forest, where the Bachaue is predominantly occupied by forest and grassland. Quality class III can be achieved here in partial sections, which corresponds to a moderate impairment. In the local area of ​​Verl, the Ölbach predominantly shows severe structural damage and is classified according to quality class VI, which in this area is mainly due to the straightening of the river bed. In the lower reaches, in which the Ölbach marks the Gütersloh city limits and does not cross any other settlement areas, the structural quality can, however, be assessed somewhat more positively. Often the quality class IV corresponding to a significant impairment is achieved here, in the area of ​​the mouth again quality class III.

Overall, however, significant hydraulic engineering changes can be observed in the course of the Ölbach, which are primarily due to dents , dams , weirs and straightening. According to the water quality report from 2001, around 78% of the total stretch of the Ölbach is considered to be remote or alien.

Buildings on the Ölbach

Verl measuring system with writing level

Measuring points

There are a total of five measuring systems in the course of the river to record the flow rates of the Ölbach, each of which is equipped with writing gauges and in which the bed of the brook is set in a wooden measuring profile.

Looking downstream, the first system is located in the upper reaches of the Bokelmeyer mill, while the second system can be found in the settlement area of ​​Stukenbrock. This measuring point is the oldest, which was put into operation in November 1932. The third measuring system exists at Holte Castle in the Holter Forest, and the fourth station at the level of the Mühlgrund mill near Sende. The last measuring system is finally on the edge of the forest east of the Verler local area.

Old weir of the Ölbach

Dams

As in neighboring Landerbach, there are remains of old weirs in several places in the Ölbach. These were closed earlier in order to flood the adjacent meadows and fertilize the nutrient-poor soils with the suspended matter . The aim of this process, known as "meadow rafting", was to achieve mowing that could be performed several times a year to produce hay even in dry years. In order to prevent conflicts with mill owners and the advantage of weir operators located upstream, the time intervals and permissible water levels that had to be observed for rafting were regulated by the responsible administrative district.

It was only with the advent of artificial fertilizers in the first half of the 20th century that the meadow rafting method was discontinued.

Holter ironworks

The age of industrialization began on the Ölbach in 1839, when the manor owner Friedrich Ludwig Tenge built the Holter ironworks, in which the lawn iron ore found in the area of ​​Holte Castle was smelted from 1842 . The lawn iron ore originated in northern Germany after the last ice age during the Holocene and was formed mainly in river valleys in fine to medium-grain sands through which ferrous groundwater flowed. In addition to the high occurrence of lawn iron ore, the Holter Forest and the Ölbach also contributed to the choice of location: The charcoal obtained from the Holter Forest was fed to the blast furnace used for smelting, and the ironworks' machines were operated by the hydropower of the Ölbach. For this purpose, the slope of the river bed was significantly deepened so that water wheels and later a water turbine can be used.

In 1843, around 500 meters upstream, two collecting ponds fed by the Ölbach were created as a reservoir for times of scarcity. When the Holter ironworks ceased operations in 1966, subsequently fell into disrepair and was finally largely demolished, these collection ponds were preserved. Today the two bodies of water form a wet biotope and can be hiked around on a nature trail. After the connection between the Ölbach and the collecting ponds was regulated by a weir in the last few decades, the connection is now via an open watercourse after renovation work, which overcomes the difference in height via bed sills and thus creates a continuity for the water fauna.

Ölbach at the former Verler village mill
New Ölbach at the Delkenmühle near Varensell

Watermills

Water mills were operated with the water from the Ölbach for centuries .

The Bokelmeyer-Stennenberg mill , which was formerly used to manufacture paper, is located in Stukenbrock about one kilometer below the headwaters .

The Mühlgrund house is located on the edge of the Holter Wald nature reserve in the Sende district of Verler. This building is a restored flour mill with a decrepit water wheel , two grinding cycles and modern power generation via a water turbine . The building is managed and is now a popular destination, especially for cyclists.

The Verler village mill is a half-timbered building with a crooked hip roof . The mill at the northern entrance to the village is the oldest mill in the city; it was first mentioned in a document in 1370 and has a half-timbered core that is said to go back to 1598. It owes its current appearance to a comprehensive renovation in 1819. The village mill is no longer in operation today, and a mill wheel no longer exists either.

The listed Bunter Mühle is located in the Verler district of Sürenheide in the immediate vicinity of Lake Verler. This structure, erected in 1832, is a four-column half-timbered building with a longitudinal dome . The mill has two stone entrances, a mixer and a sifter as well as a water turbine that produces 7.5 kWh of electricity when it is optimally used . In order to operate the Bunter Mühle, an arm of the river, the New Ölbach, was relocated to the higher south with the aim of achieving the greatest possible drop height for energy generation.

The Delkenmühle is also north of Varensell on the course of the New Ölbach. The listed building was built in 1725 and originally had a large undershot water wheel , which was later replaced by two water wheels of different sizes. After the building no longer had a mill wheel after cessation of grinding operations, it was restored in the 1990s and the original mill wheel was restored. Parts of the old mill wheels, which could be found in the mud of the Ölbach, helped with the reconstruction.

The last mill before the estuary is the 12th century Schledebrück watermill , which is located on the estate of the same name near Lintel.

Nepomuk statue at the Verler village mill

Nepomuk statue

At the level of the road bridge in front of the Verler village mill there is a statue of St. John Nepomuk , who is among other things the patron saint of bridges and the patron saint against water hazards. The statue was originally a wooden figure, dates from 1752 and was made at the behest of the Count of Rietberg-Kaunitz at the time, who made Nepomuk the patron saint of the County of Rietberg in the 18th century. After the figure was destroyed in 1920, the statue was replaced by a stone figure, which was also destroyed in 1976. The statue was rebuilt in 1980 based on this stone figure. Today's version of the Nepomuk statue still bears the year of origin 1752 in the base inscription.

etymology

The origin of the name "Ölbach" can only be guessed at; conclusive evidence has not yet been produced. The term may refer to mills located by the stream, which are said to have once served to extract cooking oil. Another theory is based on shimmering spots on the surface of the water that act like an oil layer, which are visible in some sections of the water and can be traced back to the natural occurrence of iron hydroxide in the stream water.

Another attempt to explain the origin of the name is the word "Ohlie", which comes from the Low German language and means swamp.

Others

Above all, the inhabitants of Verl show a strong connection to the body of water, so the term “Ölbachgemeinde” or “Ölbachstadt” is common for Verl. Furthermore, a piece of music with the text line "Verl am Ölbach (...)" refers directly to the city's ties to this river.

Individual evidence

  1. a b German basic map 1: 5000
  2. a b Topographical Information Management, Cologne District Government, Department GEObasis NRW ( Notes )
  3. Annual hydrological report 2013, Detmold district government, page 13 (PDF file; 3.53 MB)
  4. a b c d Profile of the Ölbach spring (State Office for Nature, Environment and Consumer Protection North Rhine-Westphalia) ( Memento from March 31, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 117 kB)
  5. Cycling network NRW ( Memento from December 31, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
  6. ^ Geological Service North Rhine-Westphalia, Geoscientific Community Description Oerlinghausen ( Memento from August 24, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  7. ^ Deutscher Wetterdienst: mean values ​​for the period 1961 to 1990
  8. ELWAS-WEB. Retrieved April 22, 2019 .
  9. a b More life for Ems and Co. Obere Ems (Ministry for Climate Protection, Environment, Agriculture, Nature and Consumer Protection of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia) (PDF; 3.3 MB)
  10. Water assessment of the city ​​of Gütersloh. Scroll down to "Legend"
  11. Water structure quality report 2005 (State Office for Nature, Environment and Consumer Protection North Rhine-Westphalia) ( Memento from September 24, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
  12. Water quality report 2001 (State Office for Nature, Environment and Consumer Protection North Rhine-Westphalia) (PDF; 1.0 MB)
  13. ^ A b Potthoff, Günter (1995): From the history of the water mills in Schloß Holte-Stukenbrock, Verl and Hövelhof
  14. Steps for the Ölbach (Neue Westfälische Zeitung of May 26, 2010)
  15. a b The bell of January 2, 2010, special supplement "Verl - Wir sind Stadt"
  16. Mills in Westphalia-Lippe (PDF; 101 kB)
  17. Malte Möhr: Discovering Verl. Exploring nature and history . plv-Verlag, Mammendorf 2006, ISBN 3-86611-080-4 .

Web links

Commons : Ölbach  - Collection of Images