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StartClim
www.austroclim.at/startclim/
to react to currently important subjects and
show where further research is necessary. StartCli
m-projects have supplied a wealth of new data and
understanding that they are also of practical
relevance. Reports (in German, overview-reports
in German and English) can be downloaded from
www.austroclim.at/startclim/. An open, partially
commented reference database on the topic climate
change and extreme events was compiled in the
framework of StartClim. It is available to all
future research projects in the field and is
enlarged every year.
Until now StartClim has eight funding partners
(see logos at the bottom) consisting of
ministries and other institutions.
Administrative tasks are assumed by the Austrian
Federal Environmental Agency. The scientific
project leader is Univ.Prof. Dr. Helga
Kromp-Kolb, Institute of Meteorology, Department
of Water, Atmosphere and Environment, University
of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences,
Vienna (BOKU). All StartClim projects are
supported by international scientific
advisors. An open, partially commented reference
database on the topic climate change and extreme
events was compiled in the framework of
StartClim. It is available to all future research
projects in the field and is enlarged every year.
The climate research platform AustroClim
(www.austroclim.at) aims at meeting the challenge
climate change poses to science. It wants to
support decisions that have to be made in
political/ economic sectors and by each
individual. AustroClim initiated the research
programme StartClim after the flood
2002. StartClim started in 2003. Many Austrian
scientist from different Austrian research
institutions deal and dealt with the thematic
areas climate change extreme meteorological
events and their impacts on economy, agriculture,
tourism, health, energy, especially in
Austria. StartClim is initiating research on
topics not yet established in Austria and wants
to promote young scientists. The short term
projects allow
StartClim2003 StartClim.1 Quality control and
statistical characteristics of selected climate
parameters on the basis of daily values in the
face of Extreme Value Analysis 6) StartClim.2
Analysis of the representativeness of a data
collected over a span of fifty years for the
description of the variability of climatic
extremes 6) StartClim.3a Extreme Events
Documentation of hazardous events in Austria such
as rock avalanches, floods, debris flows,
landslides, and avalanches 18) StartClim.3b
Documentation of the impact of extreme weather
events on agricultural production 1) StartClim.4
Development of a method to predict the occurrence
of extreme events from large-scale meteorological
fields 19) StartClim.5 Testing statistical
downscaling techniques for their applicability to
Extreme Events in Austria 19) StartClim.6
Adaptation strategies for economic sectors
affected heavily by extreme weather events
Economic evaluation and policy options
2)8) StartClim.7 Changes in the social
metabolism due to the 2002-floodings in Austria
case study of an affected community
14) StartClim.8 Risk-management and public
welfare in the face of extreme weather events
What is the optimal mix of private insurance,
public risk pooling and alternative transfer
mechanisms 8) StartClim.9 Summer 2002 floods in
Austria damage account data pool
5) StartClim.10 Economic aspects of the
2002-Floodings Data analysis, asset accounts and
macroeconomic effects 3) StartClim.11
Communication at the interface science
education 14)19) StartClim.12 Developing an
innovative approach for the analysis of the
August 2002 Flood Event in comparison with
similar extreme events in recent years
9) StartClim.13 High-resolution precipitation
analysis 9) StartClim.14 Performance of
meteorological forecast models during the August
2002 floods 6) StartClim.C Design of a long term
Climate-Climate-Impact Research Program for
Austria 19)
An initial analysis of the 4122 events recorded
in the BFW Database shows that 36 of the
municipalities covering a total area equivalent
to 55 of Austria were affected by severe
torrents, debris flows and floods. Torrents are
generally limited to small catchment areas 40
of the events are registered in catchment areas
smaller than 10 km², 20 in areas smaller than 1
km².
The analyses of the 50-year data sets for Vienna,
Hohe Warte, show a significant increase of
extreme summer temperature within the last 50
years (left figure) while the extremes of winter
minimum temperatures have not become
correspondingly less frequent. For a selected
global climate change scenario, the frequency of
days with temperature extremes above 30C doubles
within the next 25 50 years (right figure),
while in about 2000 m a.s.l. the warming leads to
a decrease in the number of days with temperature
continuously below 0C by about one third.
Areas on the northerly and southerly slopes of
the Alps, such as the Salzkammergut, the district
Zell am See or the Gailtal, and a few inner
alpine areas, such as the Upper Inn Valley, are
most frequently affected. In the municipalities
Saalbach Hinterglemm, Bad Goisern und Abtenau
more than 40 events occurred during the 32 years
documented.
A cluster analysis of the daily precipitation at
the Austrian climate stations was carried out for
the period 1979-1993, using the correlation
coefficient as a measure of similarity. This
resulted in seven precipitation regions with
similar behaviour with respect to daily heavy
precipitation
-Western Austria (Vorarlberg and most of Northern
Tyrol), -Northern "Stau" (northeastern part of
Tyrol, parts of Salzburg and Upper
Austria), -Wald- and Mühlviertel (northern parts
of Upper and Lower Austria), -Eastern Region
(Vienna, northern Burgenland, parts of Lower
Austria), -Ennstal-Semmering (northern Styria and
southern Lower Austria until about the
Rax), -Southeast (southern Burgenland, central
and southern Styria, lower Carinthia),
and -Southern "Stau" (East Tyrol, upper
Carinthia)
Impacts of extreme weather events on different
economic sectors and availability of relevant
data, based on publications and interviews with
experts and stakeholders
Meteorological para-meters and their influence on
yields of grassland, spring barley, maize and
soft wheat were examined on the district scale
for the year 2003 in percent of the average
yields of 1997 to 2002. The results gave evidence
for the importance of differentia-tion between
geogra-phical regions and crop species.
StartClim2004 StartClim2004.A Analysis of heat
and drought periods in Austria Extension of the
daily StartClim data record by the element vapour
pressure 6) StartClim2004.B Investigation of
regional climate change scenarios with respect to
heat waves and dry spells 19) StartClim2004.C
Analysis of the impact of the drought in 2003 on
agriculture in Austria comparison of different
methods 1)19) StartClim2004.G Project at the
interface science-education in cooperation with
schools Is there any correlation between hot
weather and the intellectual fitness?
19) Associated projects Heat and drought impacts
to Austrian water supply and distribution
21) Strategies for adaptation to droughts
Evaluation of economic-financial versus technical
factors of risk management 22)25)
In the east of Austria water shortage and high
temperature periods more frequently limit yield
than in more westerly production areas. Thus the
lack of significant deviations from the long term
average of precipitation and temperature was more
important in avoiding yield reductions than for
the rest of Austria. (Acreage of respective crop
in hatched-coloured districts is below 1 of the
total district area.)
The number of hot days in Austria (under the
terms of Kyselý) has increased significantly
since the middle of the last century. The number
of hot periods and the length of hot periods
increased as well.
Participating institutions 1) ARC Seibersdorf
research 2) Austrian Humans Dimensions Programme
(HDP-A) 3) Austrian Institute of Economic
Research (WIFO) 4) Bio Forschung Austria 5)
Center of Natural Hazards and Risk Management
(ZENAR), BOKU 6) Central Institute of Meteorology
and Geodynamics 7) Department for Medical
Parasitology, MUW 8) Department of Economics,
Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz 9) Department of
Meteorology and Geophysics, University of
Vienna 10) Federal Environment Agency 11)
Gesellschaft für Wildtier und Lebensraum Greßmann
Deutz OEG 12) GKSS Forschungszentrum
Geesthacht 13) HBLFA Raumberg Gumpenstein,
Agricultural Research and Education Centre 14)
IFF Department of Social Ecology 15) IIASA 16)
Institut für touristische Raumplanung 17)
Institute of Environmantal Hygiene, Centre for
Public Health, MUW 18) Institute of Forest and
Mountain-Risk Engineering, BOKU 19) Institute of
Meteorology, BOKU 20) Institute of Sanitary
Engineering and Water Pollution Control, BOKU 21)
Institute of Water Management, Hydrology and
Hydraulic Engineering, BOKU 22) Joanneum Resarch
Graz 23) The Austrian Agency für Health and Food
Safety, AGES 24) VINCA, Vienna Institute for
Nature Conservation Analysis 25) Wegener Center
StartClim2005 (in progress) StartClim2005.A1-a
Impacts of temperature on mortality and morbidity
in Vienna 17)19) StartClim2005.A1-b Nocturnal
cooling under a changing climate 17)19)
StartClim2005.C2 Studies on the distribution of
tularaemia in Styria under the aspect of climate
change 11) StartClim2005.C3a Impacts of climate
change on agricultural pests and antagonists in
organic farming in Eastern Austria
4)19) StartClim2005.C3b Risk analysis of the
establishment of the Western Flower Thrips
(Frankliniella occidentalis) under outdoor
conditions in Austria as a result of the climatic
change 19)23) StartClim2005.C5 An allergenic
neophyte and its potential spread in Austria
range dynamics of ragweed (Ambrosia
artemisiifolia) under influence of climate change
10)24) StartClim2005.F GIS-sustained simulation
of diminishing habitats of snow grouse, black
grouse, chamois and capricorn under conditions of
global warming and heightening forest limits with
consideration of specific animal diseases 13)22)
Future scenarios for Austria show a significant
increase of the number of hot days depending on
the sea level of the stations. Heat days are
doubled in the lower regions and partly much more
than doubled in higher regions.
StartClim2006 (starting) StartClim2006.A
Particulate matter and climate change - Which
interconnections can be found in Northeast
Austria ? 17)19) StartClim2006.B Risk
assessment for the autochthonous occurrence of
visceral leishmaniosis in Austria
7)19) StartClim2006.C Impacts of climate change
on the increase of grub damages (Scarabaeidae
Coleoptera) in Austrian grassland
4)19) StartClim2006.D1 The impact of climatic
changes on the Austrian summer tourism
16)19) StartClim2006.D2 Adaptation of summer
tourism in Austria in respect of climate change
6) StartClim2006.F Climate change impacts on
energy use for space heating and cooling in
Austria 9)22)25)
MEDEA Meteorological Extreme event Data
information system for the Eastern Alpine
region The information system MEDEA is developed
in StartClim to bring together a wide range of
data on extreme weather events and
weather-included events in Austria from different
scientific fields. MEDEA is designed to provide a
long term archive for data relevant to extreme
events for scientists working in climatology as
well as those working on the consequences of
climate change. MEDEA has the aim to allow
integrated analyses of diverse data related to
extreme events in Austria.
Informationen und Kontakt Univ.Prof. Dr. Helga
Kromp-Kolb Tel [phone]
helga.kromp-kolb_at_boku.ac.at Mag. Ingeborg
Schwarzl Tel [phone]
ingeborg.schwarzl_at_boku.ac.at Institute of
Meteorology, BOKU, Peter-Jordan-Straße 82, 1190
Vienna http//www.wau.boku.ac.at/met.html,
http//www.austroclim.at/ Dipl.Ing. Ursula
Bodisch Tel [phone]
ursula.bodisch_at_umweltbundesamt.at Federal
Environment Agency http//www.umweltbundesamt.at/u
mwelt/