Projects involving Neusiedlersee

Abstract

Events such as floods, droughts, freezing solid, typical of a shallow lake, have been responsible for a multitude of projects (see Cholnoky, 1922; Goll, 1907; Kovacs, 1901; Roth-Fuchs, 1929; Sauerzopf, 1959; Varga, 1937; Wendelberger, 1951; Winkler, 1923). Conflicting opinions became evident at each planning stage, some advocating a complete drainage of the lake, whilst others demanded its total or partial preservation. The measures so far put into force, and with only a single exception all of the earlier projects, aimed at drainage of the lake. Not until the peace treaty of St. Germain allocated the major part of the lake to Austria on account of the German-speaking population of the district, was complete or partial preservation held to be desirable. Prior to this it had been hoped to gain an equivalent of approximately 50 per cent of the area already available to the lake-side communities by totally draining the lake. However, the doubtful suitability of the soil beneath large areas of the lake was completely overlooked, despite the fact that relevant studies on this subject were already in existence from the years 1865–68, when the lake was dried-out (Moser, 1866).