Border-free conservation

Border-free conservation along the Danube

Along its 2888 km run, the River Danube crosses different climate zones, and is therefore home to a remarkably diverse flora and fauna. At the same time, the Danube is one of the ten most endangered rivers in the world. A new national park is planned.

Through its many hundreds of kilometers in length the Danube not only flows through a number of countries, but also its "face" changes over the course of this journey: From a mountain river with coarse gravel banks and in part narrow gorges hemming in the river bed, the Danube changes to a major river with extensive lowland forests, meanders and islands. And each of these different sections is a different habitat for some highly endangered animal and plant species.

However this biodiversity is under serious threat: Because of the massive developments for shipping and planned hydro-electric power use, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) ranks the Danube as one of the ten most endangered rivers in the world. Only 20% of the flood areas that existed in the 19th century are still present and only half of the river at least is in a near-natural state. The upper reaches of the Danube in particular are shaped by hydro-electric power stations and reservoirs - and make the river impassable for many fish. On Austrian territory alone there are eleven Danube power plants; downstream from Bratislava is the largest Slovak power plant, Gabčíkovo, which produces about 11% of the national electricity demand. Pollution from industry, agriculture and tourism, shore lining works and port facilities provide additional hazards for the various river systems. This is a challenge facing the CENTROPE states as well as the other countries along its route, and success can come only from working together.

New national parks planned

With the National Park Donau-Auen a model cross-border protected area at the intersection of the Danube, Neusiedlersee and March areas is part of CENTROPE. The National Park preserves more than 9,300 hectares of one of the largest intact floodplain landscapes in Central Europe. With a total length of 38 kilometers, the area measures barely 4 km at its widest point. The still free-flowing Danube has at this point water level fluctuations of up to seven meters, which constantly re-moulds the floodplain landscape. After the first cross-border initiatives in the 1980s, 1996 saw the foundation of the National Park, and today the Donau-Auen National Park is a popular recreation area for people from all the neighbouring CENTROPE regions. The 07 hiking trail and the Danube bike path run through the park, originating in Passau and passes through Hainburg and into Hungary. In particular, there have already been close cooperative relations between the tourism authorities in Austria and Slovakia.  

In addition cooperation with important protected areas in the Hungarian Danube region is being continuously expanded. In the vicinity of Györ there is a tributary, the Moson-Danube, where the Danube branches from the main stream and forms the Small Rye Island (Szigetköz/Malý Žitný ostrov). The majority of the island is on Hungarian territory, and to the north partially on Slovak territory. The island serves as a breeding ground for migratory birds and is a haven for wildlife. In addition, different plant species live there that are not found elsewhere in the two countries. Since 1987, much of the island has been protected, and for the near future a national park on Szigetköz/Malý Žitný ostrov is planned.

International cooperation - CENTROPE countries active in the protection of the Danube

In 1994, the Agreement on Cooperation for the Protection and Sustainable Use of the Danube was signed in Sofia by the Danube countries. Two of the long-term objectives are to establish a uniform water conservation system and the development of a transnational warning and alert system to respond to accidental pollution. The International Commission for the Protection of the Danube with headquarters in Vienna is the organisational implementation hub. In addition to the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria and Hungary, the other parties to the agreement are Germany, Bulgaria, Croatia, Moldova, Romania, Ukraine and the EU.

In the area of flood protection water treaties and bilateral and multilateral water commissions between the CENTROPE partners have existed for decades. In 2004 the thirteen signatory countries to the Danube River Protection Convention finally adopted a "Programme of Action for Sustainable Flood Protection in the Danube River Basin". This is partly intended to protect people and property and also to encourage the preservation and improvement of the river ecosystems. The Action Programme will be implemented at a national level.

"Danube Parks" hub.

In June 2009 nine protected area administrations from Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria and Romania established a network of Danube protected areas with the name Danube Park with the objective of establishing common conservation challenges along the length of the Danube to address transnationally coordinated solutions. Over a three-year period and co-financed as a project under the European Territorial Cooperation programme SOUTH EAST EUROPE, experience will be shared, joint strategies will be developed and pilot projects will be implemented.

In addition, the new Danube Region Strategy devised by the European Commission will support transnational cooperation in nature conservation. One of the three pillars of cooperation relates to the conservation of nature and biodiversity. If each pillars is treated equally, one can hope for the stronger anchoring of trans-national protection strategies along the river, both at a political and at a program level.