Lörrach refreshes: New mist showers increase summer comfort in the city!

Lörrach refreshes: New mist showers increase summer comfort in the city!

In the city of Lörrach, the city administration has installed new mist showers in the city center, which have been in operation since June 15, 2025. These cooling systems are strategically located in the pedestrian zone at Senser Platz and in Turmstrasse near Karstadt. Every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., the mist showers spray a fine mist of water, which helps to significantly increase the quality of stay in the city center, especially when summer temperatures rise. The measure is part of an environmentally friendly climate adaptation and was financed by the funding program for sustainable inner cities and centers, as verlagshaus-jaumann.de reports.

But what exactly makes these mist showers so beneficial? Comparable systems are already showing promising results in other cities. In Emmendingen, tests are currently being carried out to spray water mist every two minutes in order to reduce the ambient temperature by up to five degrees. The test run on Schlossplatz will be carried out until the end of the summer holidays, and if the results are positive, the system could soon be used across the board. Of course, the water consumption in the mist showers is low; In Lörrach, for example, this was only 25 liters per hour during the test leaves. The Baden-Württemberg City Association also supports the use of such spray systems to improve the microclimate, as swr.de reports.

Urban climate and mist showers

The phenomenon of urban heat islands is remarkably pronounced in cities like Lörrach and many others. The denser development and less vegetation ensure that the city climates have significantly higher temperatures and lower wind speeds than the surrounding area. This often leads to unpleasantly hot nights, especially after sunny days. Climate change also exacerbates these problems. Urban measures to improve the climate are therefore particularly important. In Vienna, the environmental protection department has developed various strategies since 2001 to mitigate the effects of climate change and increase summer comfort, which is also highlighted by wien.gv.at.

The use of mist showers is just one of several solutions to counteract the summer heat problem. In the long term, natural shade providers such as trees and the unsealing of areas also play a crucial role. Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences is currently testing alternative systems that use rainwater to cool down and are powered by solar power. Such innovative approaches could help to selectively cool hot air without wasting valuable drinking water. While cities like Vienna, Paris and Stuttgart are already using mist showers, it remains to be hoped that this technology will soon be used more widely in Baden-Württemberg and that the quality of life in the city centers will be further increased.