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COMMISSION NOTICE Assessment of plans and projects in relation to Natura 2000 sites – Methodological guidance on the provisions of Article 6(3) and (4) of the Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC · European Union

Box 24 A sensitivity mapping tool for hydropower development in Austria Hydropower developments should follow a strategic approach so that the remaining significant, sensitive and intact stretches of a river can be safeguarded. To support this, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) prepared a master plan to provide a technically sound decision basis for assessing the need to protect Austrian waters (WWF Ökomasterplan, 2009). The study was published in 2009 and assessed, for the first time, the ecological significance of 53 of the largest rivers in Austria with a catchment area larger than 500 square kilometres. It also presented the official data of the current status analysis of the ministry responsible for implementing the EU Water Framework Directive and providing conservation-related information, such as on Natura 2000 sites and other protected areas. Each of the water stretches was categorised and prioritised in order of importance according to different selection criteria (for example, ecological status, situation in protected areas, hydromorphology, length of contiguous free flow path) and each river stretch was ranked according to the following sensitivity classes: — Sensitivity class 1: very high merit protection based on the ecological status — Sensitivity class 2: very high merit protection due to the situation in reserve(s) — Sensitivity class 3: highly deserving of protection on the basis of morphology — Sensitivity class 4: highly worthy of protection due to length of contiguous free flow — Sensitivity class 5: potentially worthy of protection as there is no existing database for environmental condition assessment — Sensitivity class 6: potentially worthy of protection — Sensitivity class 7: low merit protection — Sensitivity class 8: existing energy economic use — Data deficient (ecological status, hydromorphology)

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-09-25 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.