Austria Wienerwald

Declaration date: 2005

Surface area: 105.000 ha

Administrative division: Federal States: Vienna and

Lower Austria

Human activities:

The Biosphere Reserve Wienerwald is close to the agglom-

eration of Vienna, Austria's most important economic area.

In Lower Austria, 51 communities with about 282,000 in-

habitants are either completely or partly within the Bio-

sphere Reserve. Parts of seven municipal districts of Vienna

with a population of about 477,000 are part of the Bio-

sphere Reserve. Therefore more than 750,000 people live in

the region that is all set to become a model region for sus-

tainability. In addition to scientific research projects about biodiversity

(ecological sustainability) other projects facilitated by the

biosphere reserve management take ecological, economical

and social sustainability into account. For example the

“Wienerwald Pasture Cattle Project” integrates conserva-

tion of culture landscape, livestock friendly breeding, short

transport (ecological sustainability), cooperation between

farmers, a butcher, restaurants (social sustainability) and a

high quality - high price product (economic sustainability).

Protection classifications:

At the national level Core zones are designated as nature protected areas by fed-

eral law Buffer zones and the whole area in lower Austria are desig-

nated as landscape protected area by federal law

Ecological characteristics:

The Wienerwald is an important biodiversity hot spot

throughout Europe. Diverse types of habitats have developed

here due to numerous factors such as the meeting of different

biogeographical and climatic regions, different geological

conditions, considerable altitude difference and, -last but not

least- the human influence. The habitats in the open-land cultivated area in the Wiener-

wald are of outstanding international importance. Vast mead-

ows and pastures which are the result of centuries of cultiva-

tion dominate large parts of the region. Dry grasslands are

particularly characteristic in this region. There are also a few

unimproved grasslands on moist and wet sites, with moor

grass meadows and calcareous fens. Ancient vineyards and

fruit orchards, areas dominated by agriculture, rich sources of

water and numerous structural elements enrich the landscape

diversity of the Wienerwald. Large areas of the Wienerwald are contiguously wood cov-

ered (more than 60%). The dominant tree species is beech

(Fagus sylvatica). However, there is more to the Wienerwald

then beech forests. It is home to 25 different types of forest

vegetation. Austria's largest forests of downy oak (Quercus

pubescens) and sub-Mediterranean pine forests with the en-

demic Austrian pine (Pinus nigra) at the easternmost edge of

the region are of European significance.

Contact information:

Biosphärenpark Wienerwald

Deutschwaldstraße 15/b , A-3002 Purkersdorf, Austria

T +43 2231 66804 F +43 2231 66804-50

www.bpww.at E office @bpww.at

© F.. Kovacs

© I.Drozdowsky