Dry years

471 municipalities threatened with water shortages from 2050

There is still enough water coming out of our garden hoses - but that could change.

(Bild: dpa-Zentralbild/Ralf Hirschberger (Symbolbild))

Parts of Austria could face water shortages in the future due to climate change. In an analysis, the environmental NGO Greenpeace identified 471 municipalities across Austria "that are at high risk of acute water shortages in 2050".

More than half of the affected municipalities are located in Lower Austria, according to a press release.

Less groundwater available than needed
According to the analysis, the affected municipalities are located in regions where there is less groundwater available in dry years than is needed for public water supply, industry and agriculture - which could lead to conflicts of use.

More than half of these municipalities, 288 in total, are located in Lower Austria. A total of 82 municipalities are affected in Styria, 54 in Tyrol, 38 in Burgenland and eight in Upper Austria. The federal capital of Vienna and the provincial capitals of Linz, Innsbruck and St. Pölten are also located in these areas.

"Need a real water protection plan"
The NGO called on Agriculture Minister Norbert Totschnig (ÖVP) to "get a real water protection plan off the ground before the National Council elections". "Scorching heat, dried-up lakes and bathing ponds that turn into small mud puddles. The last two summers have shown that droughts are affecting our country more and more frequently. This is also affecting more and more fields where our food is withering due to a lack of water," says Sebastian Theissing-Matei from Greenpeace Austria.

According to the NGO, however, there are still plenty of ways to stop the threat. For example, Greenpeace has called for large water withdrawals by industry to be reported digitally in a central register, for efficient water use to be promoted and for regional programs to be developed to reduce water consumption.