Styrian-Lower Austrian Limestone Alps

The Styrian and Lower Austrian Limestone Alps are the most eastern part of the Northern Limestone Alps, of the Enns to the Vienna Basin. These include the kalkhochalpinen Massive high Schwab, Veitsch, Schneealpe, Rax and Schneeberg, the Oetscher and north of the Limestone Alps to the flysch zone.

The geological conditions of the calcareous mountains make this part of the Limestone Alps a valuable drinking water reservoir from which the Vienna water supply has its origin. The geologist Eduard Suess sat down already in 1864 in the Vienna City Council for a water line from this area a. In 1873, this First Vienna Mountain Spring Pipeline was opened from the Rax -Schneeberg area.

The Second Vienna Mountain Spring Pipeline was opened in 1910 and draws its water also from the field of Styrian and Lower Austrian Limestone Alps, it is fed by springs in the high Schwab area near Wild Alps. The largest source is the Kläfferquelle at the foot of the high Schwab, in the Styrian Salzatal. This source provides snow melt, 860 million liters per day, four times more than can be transported via the high- water source line to Vienna. The Vienna Forest Service manages the forests in the catchment area of the sources that have been designated as protected water area. Large parts of the forests include the pen Admont.

• Mountains in Europe
• Mountains in Styria
• Mountains in Lower Austria