Changes in water and land: the reconstructed Viennese riverscape from 1500 to the present

Hohensinner, Severin; Lager, Bernhard; Sonnlechner, Christoph; Haidvogl, Gertrud; Gierlinger, Sylvia; Schmid, Martin; Krausmann, Fridolin; Winiwarter, Verena

doi:10.1007/s12685-013-0074-2

Cited by 60 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…A remarkable feature of the Adige planform before channelization was the presence of anabranching reaches, characterized by multiple, relatively stable secondary channels with large forested islands. At that time, this pattern was quite common in mild‐sloping (0.1–0.3%), wide valleys of the Alps (Comiti, ; Campana et al ., ) as well as in other large European rivers, such as the Danube (Hohensinner et al ., , b).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Channelization of a large Alpine river: what is left of its original morphodynamics?

Scorpio

Zen

Bertoldi

et al. 2018

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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The Adige River drains 12 200 km2 of the Eastern Alps and flows for 213 km within this mountain range. Similar to other large rivers in Central Europe, the Adige River was subject to massive channelization works during the 19th century. Thanks to the availability of several historical maps, this river represents a very valuable case study to document the extent to which the morphology of the river changed due to channelization and to understand how much is left of its original morphodynamics. The study was based on the analysis of seven sets of historical maps dating from 1803–1805 to 1915–1927, on geomorphological analysis, on the application of mathematical morphodynamic theories and on the application of bar and channel pattern prediction models. The study concerns 115 km of the main stem and 29 km of its tributaries. In the pre‐channelization conditions, the Adige River presented a prevalence of single‐thread channel planforms. Multi‐thread patterns developed only immediately downstream of the main confluences. During the 19th century, the Adige underwent considerable channel adjustment, consisting of channel narrowing, straightening, and reduction of bars and islands. Multi‐thread and single‐thread reaches evolved through different evolutionary trajectories, considering both the channel width and the bar/vegetation interaction. Bar and channel pattern predictors showed good correspondence with the observed patterns, including the development of multi‐thread morphologies downstream of the confluences. Application of the free‐bar predictor helped to interpret the strong reduction – almost complete loss – of exposed sediment bars after the channelization works, quantifying the riverbed inclination to form alternate bars. This morphological evolution can be observed in other Alpine rivers of similar size and similar massive channelization, therefore, a simplified conceptual model for large rivers subjected to channelization is proposed, showing that a relatively small difference in the engineered channel width may have a strong impact on the river dynamics, specifically on bar formation. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Channelization of a large Alpine river: what is left of its original morphodynamics?

Scorpio

Zen

Bertoldi

et al. 2018

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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“…66 Gingrich, Haidvogl andKrausmann, 2012. Gierlinger, Gingrich, Haidvogl andKrausmann, 2013. 67 A more detailed analysis is provided by Haidvogl, Guthyne-Horvath, Gierlinger, Hohensinner and Sonnlechner, 2013. example is the abstraction of some of the Wien River water to the main sewers alongside the river, which took over the discharge function. 2) Fossil fuel based technologies (coal, steel and steam engine) substituted the supply function of the Danube.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…discharge was closely tied to urban streams and rivers. We can further draw on reconstructions of the urban water network and in particular the Danube River based on an evaluation of historical maps published in Hohensinner et al 2013.…”

Section: Metabolism and Waterscape In An Industrializing City: A Quanmentioning

confidence: 99%

Metabolismo y paisaje acuático en una ciudad en la industrialización: una evaluación cuantitativa del uso de los recursos y su relación con la transformación del paisaje acuático urbano en Viena del siglo XIX

et al. 2016

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Metabolismo y paisaje acuático en una ciudad en la industrialización: Una evaluación cuantitativa del uso de los recursos y su relación con la transformación del paisaje acuático urbano en Viena del siglo XIXResumen -En este trabajo tomamos la perspectiva del metabolismo urbano para investigar la transformación del paisaje acuático de Viena. Mostramos cómo el metabolismo de la ciudad se entrelaza profundamente con el paisaje acuático y cómo esta relación cambió durante la industrialización. El eje metodológico de esta investigación parte de una evaluación cuantitativa del uso de los recursos urbanos utilizando métodos de contabilidad de fl ujos metabólicos. Se presentan los datos sobre la entrada de energía (1800 a 1914), materiales (1830-1874) y agua (1860 a 1910), así como los fl ujos de las aguas residuales de los hogares (1800 y 1910). Se añade además una discusión crítica sobre las fuentes más importantes de esta investigación. Nuestros hallazgos sugieren que en la transformación de una economía agraria a una sociedad industrial se afectó profundamente el paisaje acuático dentro de la ciudad y en sus alrededores. Funciones tradicionalmente desempeñadas por los ríos y arroyos, que van desde el transporte, el suministro de energía, el suministro de agua dulce o la descarga y limpieza de las aguas residuales fueron sustituidas por la oferta de nuevas tecnologías basadas en combustibles fósiles y en la separación de los materiales de los cuerpos de agua. Se detectaron cambios y presiones ecológicas en la calidad del agua, originando complejas intervenciones hidrológicas que alteraron profundamente el paisaje acuático y su papel en el funcionamiento urbano. Algunos legados de estas transformaciones todavía infl uyen hoy en día en el metabolismo de la ciudad.Abstract -In this paper we adopt an urban metabolism perspective to investigate the transformation of Vienna's waterscape. We show how deeply the city's metabolism is intertwined with the urban waterscape and how this relationship changed during industrialization. The central focus of this study is a quantitative assessment of urban resource use using material and energy fl ow accounting methods. We present data on input fl ows of energy (1800 to 1914), material (1830 to 1874) and water (1860 to 1910) and household wastewater (1800 and 1910), as well as a critical discussion of the important sources for this research. Our fi ndings suggest that the transformation from an agrarian economy to an industrial society profoundly affected the waterscape within the city and its surroundings. Functions traditionally fi lled by rivers and creeks ranging from transport, electric power, fresh water supply and wastewater treatment became increasingly provided by new fossil fuel based technologies and separated from the bodies of water. Ecological changes and pressures on water quality generated complex hydrological interventions that deeply altered the urban waterscape and its role in urban operations. Legacies of this transformation still infl uence the functioning and t...

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“…3 During the first siege by the Ottoman army in 1529, the evolution of the river bend was already at an advanced stage ( Fig. 1 in Hohensinner et al 2013b). First indications of a major rearrangement of the Danube channel network are provided by complaints in the 1550 s about the repeated erosion of the road and gardens between Nußdorf and Klosterneuburg, located upstream (see upper left corner in Fig.…”

Section: The Danube Morphology and Climatementioning

confidence: 99%

Floods, fights and a fluid river: the Viennese Danube in the sixteenth century

Sonnlechner¹,

Hohensinner

Haidvogl

2013

Water Hist

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Alluvial rivers can show unpredictable channel changes and humans living along the river corridor repeatedly have to cope with the alterations of their physical environment. This was specifically the case in the mid-sixteenth century, when the Viennese were confronted with one major problem: the Danube River successively abandoned its main arm that ran close to the city and shifted further north. This was at the time when Vienna became the permanent residence of the Holy Roman Empire (except from 1583 to 1611 when it was moved to Prague), due to the Habsburgs holding the crown. Vienna was also the capital of the so-called Danube Monarchy, which came into being in the early sixteenth century. The city assumed increasing significance, being home to and hosting important authorities and persons. In particular after the first siege by the Ottoman army in 1529, the resource need for a complex fortification system was extremely high. This paper aims to highlight: (1) the morphological Danube dynamics together with floods and extreme weather situations in the sixteenth century; (2) the main actors in the transformation of the Danube; (3) changes of the river's course from 1550 to 1600/1650 and the consequences for bridging the river and the infrastructure as a whole; (4) the massive engineering measures that were undertaken in order to secure Vienna's requirements in the sixteenth century; (5) the question of floodplain settlements, and (6) the contested use of resources on the Viennese Danube floodplain.

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Changes in water and land: the reconstructed Viennese riverscape from 1500 to the present

Cited by 60 publications

References 23 publications

Channelization of a large Alpine river: what is left of its original morphodynamics?

Channelization of a large Alpine river: what is left of its original morphodynamics?

Metabolismo y paisaje acuático en una ciudad en la industrialización: una evaluación cuantitativa del uso de los recursos y su relación con la transformación del paisaje acuático urbano en Viena del siglo XIX

Floods, fights and a fluid river: the Viennese Danube in the sixteenth century

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