Water Level Has Dropped Sharply

Attersee Facing Low Water Levels: Outflow Being Reduced

The Attersee is at risk of low water levels.(Bild: Stern Schifffahrt)

The ongoing drought is taking a toll on many lakes in the state. The situation at Attersee is particularly dire— as previously reported. To prevent an impending low-water crisis, the state’s water rights authority has ordered a change in the operation of the Klauswehr weir.

Due to the ongoing drought, Lake Attersee is already losing so much water that, without intervention, “an ecologically critical low-water level is likely to occur in a few weeks.” Consequently, the state water authority ordered a temporary change to the operation of the Klauswehr weir. “The outflow from Lake Attersee into the Ager River will be reduced to 4.5 cubic meters per second effective immediately,” announced Stefan Kaineder (Greens), the state councilor responsible for the matter, on Thursday.

Not Enough Water
“We must act now and cannot wait until the Ager is nothing more than a trickle. The water we are retaining in a controlled manner today will help us better weather the coming dry weeks,” he said. The goal is to allow the Attersee to drop more slowly while ensuring there is enough water for healthy fish life in the Ager.

Water Level Has Dropped Sharply
Measurements have shown that the water level of Lake Attersee was still at 100 centimeters on August 5, but had dropped to just 96 centimeters by August 12. Within a week, the water level thus dropped by about four centimeters. At the same time, approximately 2.4 cubic meters of water per second are currently flowing into Lake Attersee, but just under 6.9 cubic meters per second are being discharged, the press release continued. “Without sufficient rainfall, the lake is losing more water day by day than is flowing into it,” said Kaineder.

After obtaining expert opinions, the water rights authority has therefore ordered that the outflow from the lake at the Klauswehr be reduced to 4.5 cubic meters per second effective immediately. This measure is expected to slow the drop in the Attersee’s water level by about half in the coming days.