Danube River Basin: Progress with the Environmental Programme

1999 ◽  
Vol 40 (10) ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Botterweg ◽  
D. W. Rodda
Keyword(s):  
River Basin ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Waste Water Treatment ◽  
Warning System ◽  
Danube River ◽  
The Black Sea ◽  
Research Activity ◽  
Global Environment Facility ◽  
Major Activity ◽  
Wide Range

An Internationally funded Programme, involving the European Commission, the Global Environment Facility managed by UN Development Programme, the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, is addressing river basin problems in a unique situation. The solution of these should lead to the prevention of pollution and better water quality, protected ecosystems, sustainable water resources and more efficient sewerage and waste water treatment facilities for the 90 million population living in the region and the reduction of pollution impact on the Black Sea into which the Danube River flows. The paper introduces current Programme activities, the challenges being met and progress. Work is described for implementing a monitoring strategy, an accident emergency warning system and implementation of the 1994 Strategic Action Plan. The applied research activity is explained. The Programme is a major activity with many elements addressing a wide range of environmental problems in the catchment of a major international waterway.

The environmental programme for the Danube River Basin

1994 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 135-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. W. Rodda
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Management ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Technical Assistance ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Danube River ◽  
The Black Sea ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Regional Approach ◽  
The Danube River ◽  
Danube River Basin

The Programme has the objective of providing a regional approach to environmental management in the Danube River Basin where there is great pressure from a diverse range of human activities. Serious pollution problems exist from urban populations, from industry, and from intensive agricultural practices. Although the water quality of the main Danube river is probably better than the Rhine because of its greater flow, the same is not the case in the tributaries where there the problems are more serious. A factor which makes a compelling case for a regional approach is the deterioration of the Black Sea into which the main Danube river discharges significant loads of nutrients and a range of non-degradable contaminants. The application of limited financial resources will require fine judgement about the high priority pollution sources that will lead to cost-effective improvements. This action, and other technical assistance, also requires a considerable effort to strengthen the organisations having responsibility for environmental management, and to develop effective public participation. The paper emphasises the water pollution problems in the river basin.

Identification of nitrate sources, hot spots, and dilution in the Danube River Basin using a multitracer approach

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janine Halder ◽  
Yuliya Vystavna ◽  
Cedric Douence ◽  
Christian Resch ◽  
Roman Gruber ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Stable Isotopes ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Danube River ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
The Black Sea ◽  
Main Stream ◽  
Water Quality Data ◽  
The Danube River ◽  
Danube River Basin

<p>The Danube is Europe`s second longest river, stretching from Germany to the Black Sea. Water quality in the Danube River Basin is regularly monitored by the national authorities of all riparian countries and in addition for specific water quality data during the Joint Danube Surveys (JSD), which is organised by the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River every 6 years.</p><p>This study presents the results of water stable isotopes and stable isotopes (<sup>15</sup>N and <sup>18</sup>O) of nitrate as well as major ion analysis from 3 JDS (2001, 2007, 2019). Results indicate that water stable isotopes allow to trace differences in the amount of snowmelt contribution to the Danube and hence the dilution effects of pollutants e.g. nitrate. The oxygen and nitrogen isotope compositions of nitrate are clearly indicating that nitrate in the Danube main stream mainly derives from waste water effluents, which input is increasing along the stream. This can furthermore be confirmed by results of micropollutant studies that demonstrate an increase of widely consumed pharmaceuticals (carbamazepine, diclofenac and caffeine) at different sections of the Danube River affected by tributary inflows and discharge from urban settlements.</p><p>In summary, this study is an example of combining isotope techniques, hydrological methods but also emerging compounds in order to approach the fate of anthropogenically derived nitrate within the Danube Basin. The results of this study aim to support the 2021 update of the Danube River Basin Management Plan as well as water monitoring practices across the Danube countries.</p>

An action plan for the conservation of sturgeons (acipenseridae) in the Danube River Basin

2006 ◽  
Vol 58 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 81-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Bloesch ◽  
T. Jones ◽  
R. Reinartz ◽  
B. Striebel
Keyword(s):  
River Basin ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Danube River ◽  
The Danube River ◽  
Danube River Basin

The Danube Accident Emergency Warning System

1999 ◽  
Vol 40 (10) ◽  
pp. 27-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
György G. Pintér
Keyword(s):  
River Basin ◽  
Close Contact ◽  
Processing System ◽  
Warning System ◽  
Danube River ◽  
Hazardous Substances ◽  
Operation Technique ◽  
The Danube River ◽  
Water Users ◽  
Danube River Basin

Significant number of accidental water pollution incidents occurred during the past decades in the Danube River Basin, often having transboundary impacts. Growing needs arose at the important water users (first of all at drinking water intakes) along the rivers to get early warning about such incidents. The Danube Accident Emergency Warning System (DAEWS) was put into operation in April 1997, as a result of the short term priority action of the Environmental Programme for the Danube River Basin. The Danube Accident Emergency Warning System provides immediate information on sudden changes in water characteristics, like accidental river pollution incidents having transboundary effects, to assist the responsible authorities and water users in the downstream countries to make preventive measures in time. The countries where the system is now operational are (in the order of their location in the river basin): Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Romania, and Bulgaria. The National Centres of the system established within the programme in each of the co-operating countries are called as PIACs (Principal International Alert Centres), being in close contact with the national pollution control structures. To meet the requirements on fast information transmission capabilities, the system are equipped with a satellite communication system linked to local computer network between the units of the PIACs with information processing system, hazardous substances database, the Danube Basin Alarm Model for the simulation of pollution effects. International Operation Manual provides the standard operation technique in each country. Practical example of the serious chemical accidental spill in Hungary in May 1998 illustrates the operation of the DAEWS system.

Enhancing River-Sea System Understanding by providing insights into headwaters– the Upper Danube Austria Supersite of DANUBIUS-RI

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eva Feldbacher ◽  
Stefan Schmutz ◽  
Gabriele Weigelhofer ◽  
Thomas Hein
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Danube River ◽  
Interactive Effects ◽  
The Black Sea ◽  
Study Region ◽  
The Danube River ◽  
Danube Catchment ◽  
Danube River Basin

<p>Austria has a share in three international river basins (Danube, Elbe, Rhine), but by far the most of its territory (> 96%) drains into the Danube. This Austrian territory accounts for 10% of the total area of the Danube River Basin and belongs entirely to the Upper Danube Basins, which extends from the source of the Danube in Germany to Bratislava at Austria’s eastern border to Slovakia. Austria contributes approx. 25% (ca. 50 km³/a ) to the total yearly discharge of the Danube into the Black Sea (ca. 200 km³/a).</p><p>Human activities have severely altered the Upper Danube catchment, impacting both the main stem and the main pre-alpine tributaries. Due to the Upper Danube’s considerable natural gradient and mountainous character, this part of the Danube is extensively used for hydropower production. Ten large (> 10 MW) hydropower plants are situated along the Austrian Danube (out of a total of 41), and only two Danube stretches can still be characterized as free-flowing (Wachau, Nationalpark Donau-Auen).  Besides energy generation, other human activities such as agriculture, shipping, industrialisation, urbanisation and tourism, have been and still are changing the process and system dynamics of the Upper Danube.  Climate change is additionally affecting this already heavily impacted River System.</p><p>The Upper Danube Austria and its pre-alpine network of tributaries is therefore an ideal case study region to investigate the multiple effects of human activities on riverine systems and was chosen as a “supersite” within Danubius-RI, the “International Centre for Advanced Studies on River-Sea Systems”. Danubius-RI is being developed as distributed Research Infrastructures with the goal to support interdisciplinary and integrated research on river-sea systems. DANUBIUS-RI aims to enable and support research addressing the conflicts between society’s demands, environmental change and environmental protection for river -sea systems worldwide and brings together research on freshwaters and the interface to marine waters, drawing on existing research excellence across Europe.</p><p>The supersite “Upper Danube Austria and its pre-alpine network of tributaries” covers the freshwater spectrum within the river-sea continuum, ranging from alpine and pre-alpine headwater streams along major Danube tributaries to the Danube River, including adjacent floodplains in the Upper Danube catchment. The research focus lies on the interactive effects of climate change, land use pressures, and hydromorphological alterations on the biodiversity, ecological functions, and the ecosystem service provision of streams and rivers in the Upper Danube basin and their role within the catchment.</p><p>The Supersite “Upper Danube Austria and its pre-alpine network of tributaries” joins forces of eight Austrian research institutions and is led by WasserCluster Lunz and the Institute for Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management (IHG) at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU). Research on sustainable management and restoration of riverine landscapes (WFD, FD, HD, Biodiversity  Strategy) in the Upper Danube Catchment is an important contribution to a healthy River-Sea System of the Danube River Basin as a whole.</p>

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