To fulfil the requirements of the regulation to restore the continuity of waterways in Carinthia the aim of the project was to construct fish ladders at the Schwabeck and Lavamünd Drau power plants. The local construction supervision was carried out by our employees at flussbau iC and the structural and implementation planning by our colleagues at Elea iC.
Moreover, the aim is to restore the original biodiversity in the Drau by enabling fish to migrate up to one hundred kilometres upstream, especially to spawn. Verbund Hydro Power AG is investing a total of 30 million euros in the construction of fish migration aids along the Drau in order to fulfil European water framework guidelines.
Furthermore, the reinforced concrete construction was erected on the narrow left bank of the Drau and leads through the existing fish ladder of the power plant. The walls also serve as a flood defence wall. Complete protection of the excavation pit was guaranteed during construction. The existing weir system from 1940 was excavated using historical plans from the Second World War.
The fish ladder in Schwabeck has a total length of 635 metres and overcomes a height difference of 20.54 metres with an average gradient of around 3.2%. The facility comprises 158 pools with resting and spawning zones, which have a water depth of 105-131 cm.
In addition, a fish ladder was built at the Lavamünd Drau power plant, which is 300 metres long and overcomes a height difference of 9.62 metres with an average gradient of approx. 3.2%. A total of 74 pools were built there.
For more information visit Startseite (flussbau-ic.at) and Elea iC – Engineering and consulting.
