With focus on the sustainable interaction with alpine resources and natural hazard management, EUSALP AG8 organized an event in the context of the Tyrolian Days of the Forum Alpbach on 18 August 2018. Top class speakers discussed the topic “Cooperation in Natural Hazard Management” in front of well over 100 excited participants.
Climate Change and its consequences
Global and climatic change and the natural risks arising therefrom are considered a major challenge in the alpine living space. For instance nearly 20% of all Tyrolian municipalities were affected by natural hazards last year, and one way to face this increasing threat is to further enhance the cooperative spirit in the population to create protection against natural risks together.
Risk and cooperation
Also the perception of risk in the alpine population plays a major role. The cooperative spirit is especially important since the idea of solidary is only developed poorly in the population of natural hazard risk endangered regions and people nowadays have an “all-risks-insured” mentality.
Selected examples of good practice showed that if a significant proportion of the project budget is invested in participation and communication it is possible to realize ambitious projects with consent of the parties involved. A prime example for successful integration of stakeholders is the flood protection “Zeller Becken” in the province of Salzburg, Austria was presented, which costs 29 million Euros and includes 2,5 square kilometres of retention space and 3,6 million cubic meters storage capacity. Protection for approximately 100 landowners will be provided after completion in 2020.
Successful event
All in all the event “Cooperation in Natural Hazard Management” was an excellent opportunity to discuss the different forms of cooperation and their challenges as well as possible solutions with scientists, practitioners, and regional and local decision makers from all over the Alps and Europe.
Natural Hazard Management is a topic of major interest in the EU – Strategy for the Alpine Region and the Tyrolian Days at the European Forum Alpbach. President of the European Forum Alpbach Franz Fischler, EUSALP-Action Group Leader Maria Patek of the Austrian Federal Ministry for Sustainability and Tourism, and Deputy Governor of Tyrol Josef Geisler (r.) welcome top class speakers to the expert event
© Province of Tyrol/Sedlak
From left: Willigis Gallmetzer (Warning Centre of the Civil Protection Agency, Autonomous Province of Bolzano), Markus Federspiel (Department for Water Management/Tyrol), Josef Geisler (Deputy Governor of Tyrol), Head of Section Maria Patek (Austrian Federal Ministry for Sustainability and Tourism), Gebhard Walter (Service for Torrent and Avalanche Control / Director of Provincial Headquarters Tyrol.
© Province of Tyrol/Sedlak
From left: Helmut Haslinger (Coordination of the Water Board of the Zeller Basin Flood Protection Association), Willigis Gallmetzer (Warning Centre of the Civil Protection Agency, Autonomous Province of Bolzano), Prof. Thomas Glade (University of Vienna), Präsident Franz Fischler (European Forum Alpbach), Gebhard Walter (Service for Torrent and Avalanche Control / Director of Provincial Headquarters Tyrol), Head of Section Maria Patek (EUSALP-Action Group 8), Deputy Governor of Tyrol Josef Geisler, Norbert Bäuml (Bavarian Administration for Rural Development), Markus Federspiel (Department for Water Management/Tyrol)
© Province of Tyrol/Sedlak
