“We want to protect the habitat of the Danube and help shape the future of the river "
viadonau is not only an infrastructure operator, but is also responsibility for ecologically sensitive habitats on the rivers Danube, Morava and Thaya and their banks.
To fulfil this responsibility and improve the living conditions for the typical fauna and flora found in the Danube’s aquatic ecosystems, via donau has adopted an integrated approach.
This approach is reflected not only in the implementation of ecological projects, but also in the realisation of national and international projects aimed at the further development of the environmentally friendly transport mode of inland navigation and its enhanced environmental performance.
Other major responsibilities include the management of waste from ships and the development of adaptation strategies for potential climate change within the context of international research projects. This has led to Austria’s waterway management and development company becoming a driving force in Europe.
The implementation of these projects, which is described in greater detail below, has provided via donau with wide-ranging knowledge of semi-natural river engineering and has led the company to establish this area of expertise as one of its core competencies.
Numerous visits by international delegations of experts in the fields of river engineering, ecology and navigation prove the innovative nature of viadonau’s approach which has already become reality on the Austrian stretch of the Danube.