High-ranking visitor - Water Management Coordination Committee met in Scharfling

Water management in Austria is a complex issue that is controlled and dealt with by many different actors. The responsibility lies both with the individual federal provinces within the framework of the indirect federal administration and with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Regions and Water Management, which acts as the supreme authority in matters of water management.

The Ministry's Section I - Water Management plays an important coordinating role in the implementation of the Water Law Act and all related ordinances and action plans.

The Federal Office of Water Management and its institutes are specifically designated by the Federal Office Act to advise and assist the Ministry on basic water management, fisheries management, and fish ecology issues. All agencies and institutions involved in the implementation of water law are thus responsible for the development and implementation of sustainable strategies and measures to maintain and improve water quality and quantity throughout Austria.

A good coordination of projects and measures requires a functioning and regular communication between all actors involved. For this purpose, the Water Management Coordination Committee, consisting of the head of the Water Management Section, his department heads, the responsible officials of all federal provinces, as well as selected representatives of the Federal Agency, meet regularly to discuss current water management issues.

From 25. - 26. April 2023, the working discussions took place at the Institute of Water Ecology and Fisheries Management in the new meeting room of the training building in Scharfling. During the 2-day event, participants also had the opportunity to learn about ongoing work at the IGF and the Federal Office and visited the Kreuzstein fish farm to gain insight into planned new buildings, such as the partial recirculation system for research and teaching purposes.