News

Sustainable water management at ForumAlpinum

08.06.2018

From 4-8 June 2018, 2018, water experts from around the Alps gathered in Breitenwang, Austria, where the 7th Water Conference of the Alpine Convention, took place in the scope of the ForumAlpinum, a biannual event by the International Scientific Committee on Research in the Alps (ISCAR), an observer organization to the Alpine Convention and member of the Mountain Partnership.

There were several topics at the forefront of the 7th Water Conference of the Alpine Convention such as the discussion of impacts and response to droughts in the Alpine region, one of the priority topics in the current biannual of the Water Platform of the Alpine Convention and green infrastructure for an integrated and sustainable water management in the framework of the EU- Strategy of the Alpine Region (EUSALP). Common guidelines for the use of small hydropower in the Alpine region was also discussed. The next conference is foreseen to take place in the next 2 years and presentations from the conference will be available online shortly.

According to its leading motto “Alpine Water – common good or source of conflicts?” - at the 13th ForumAlpinum, since 1994, water managers and authorities, scientists and stakeholders from all alpine countries focused on alpine water resources, their use and management issues. They identified hot spots of water use and management in the Alps, analyzed target conflicts, assessed their relevance in a regional, national or international context and discussed possible solutions. Evidence presented in keynote lectures and discussion in the various workshops made it clear that changing environmental and climatic conditions as well as growing demand leads to conflicts in water use and water management in the Alps. Excursions to the River Lech however showed the combined effort by water authorities, conservationists, engineers and scientists within the LIFE-Nature Project “Dynamic River Lech”.

The event was also an opportunity to highlight the open call for Alpine Convention’s Young Academics Award, which invites young researchers of the Water topics in the Alps to submit their master theses and get a chance to win a prize.

Read more

Learn more about the Alpine Convention’s Young Academics award

News and photo by the Alpine Convention/Taja Ferjančič Lakota