Water Management and Protected Area Authorities from four countries gathered last Thursday (22nd November) in Lendava, Slovenia, to discuss the sediment management and restoration options for the Mura River in its free-flowing stretch. This river stretch encompasses Austria, Slovenia, Croatia and Hungary, and is completely integrated in the planned 5-country Biosphere Reserve Mura-Drava-Danube.

The meeting was an opportunity to exchange perspectives, gather an overview on what data is available by which institutions, and what projects have already been or are planned to be implemented. Additionally, Helmut Habersack from the University of Applied Life Sciences (BOKU), Vienna, gave an overview on the scientific background of sediment management in rivers, and examples of how this topic is treated in other rivers in Central Europe. Klaus Michor (REVITAL) brought in different examples of restoration projects that all aim at re-establishing the natural sediment balance.

This exchange was a great first step to get an overview of different perspectives, differing between countries and sectors. It was agreed to have a follow-up meeting in early 2019, to discuss more in depth some selected topics that were raised by several participants. The aim is to discuss them from the perspective of the whole four-country river stretch, including a view of the system scale (Drava catchment). Finally, those meetings could result in a project concept for a transboundary Mura revitalization project. Such a project would greatly support the implementation of several objectives that coop MDD partners developed within the “Guidelines for a dynamic river corridor”, especially those mentioned in Chapter 3 – River Management and Engineering.