The Lower Austrian Provincial Exhibition is dedicated to the Marchfeld, its landscape, history and the people living there from March 26 to November 13, 2022. In Marchegg Castle, the renowned provincial exhibition shows everything about culture and nature in the 900 km² plain of Lower Austria. Attention is also paid to major natural events to which man is exposed in this area - these include river floods and high water. Two videos show the natural force of flood events in the Marchfeld: how they occur, how they spread and how they affect the surrounding area.
One video shows a simulation of a March 2009 flood of river March, which is a typical flood in terms of its length and shape, in which snowmelt processes lead to the flooding that typically lasts for several weeks. Additional rainfall brings a further increase of the flood. At just over 800m³/s, the March 2009 flood was close to a 10-year flood event.
The second video shows a flood of the river Lange Luss. The Lange Luss is the only section of the March floodplain that is not dammed and is therefore still flooded extensively during floods. In early June 2013, a significant flood event with over 11,000m³/s discharge occurred right here on the Austrian Danube. This flood also resulted in a backwater into the March River, where major flooding occurred in the area of the Lange Luss for almost two weeks.
Both videos were created with our simulation software Visdom, which is a unique tool for the planning of prevention measures, disaster control, but also climate change adaptation strategies in the field of water-related natural events such as flooding and heavy rain due to the combination of simulation, analysis and visualization. A long-term cooperation exists in this field with our partner Riocom, who advises numerous municipalities in the Marchfeld region, but also in the whole of Austria, on flood and special disaster control plans through its water management expertise and the use of Visdom. Flood protection and climate change related action planning are an important contribution to resilient cities and regions as well as urban planning.
Vienna, August 5, 2022
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