News & Media

(Press Release) VIENNA, 31 January – Residence of His Excellency the Ambassador of Germany to The Permanent Mission of the Federal Republic of Germany to the United Nations Vienna and to other International Organizations. As Hungary takes over the annual Presidency of the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) today, incoming President Péter Kovács has set the main priorities for his term: finding ways to support the activities of the ICPDR, strengthening water security in the Danube Basin, implementing the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and the Flood Directive (FD), as well as further strengthening the integrated approach of ICPDR and the basin-wide exchange of experiences.

Tuesday 20 and Wednesday 21 March 2018 in Rio de Jenerio (Brazil), the ICPDR had the opportunity to provide essential input in 3 different sessions at the 8th World Water Forum. The overarching agenda involved engaging in fruitful debates surrounding topics such as the overall theme of the Forum "Sharing Water" and the Sustainability Process; the debate in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and the additional water-related targets and the Paris Climate Agreement. The ICPDR was able to contribute to this debate by providing real-world examples of regional processes in the Danube River Basin and the Black Sea.

Vienna, 2 February 2018 - The 2nd of February is the World Wetlands Day. The ICDPR takes this occasion to highlight the vital significance of wetlands in the Danube River Basin.

VIENNA, Haus der Europaeischen Union, 24 January 2018 (Press Release) –
As Germany takes over the annual Presidency of the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) today, incoming President Helge Wendenburg has set three main priorities for his term: promote adaptation to climate change in the Danube River Basin, take the next steps in the implementation of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and the Flood Directive (FD), and further strengthen the integrated approach of ICPDR and the basin-wide exchange of experiences.

On Tuesday 12 and Wednesday 13 December 2017, the ICPDR held its 20th Ordinary Meeting in Vienna. Beside the heads of delegation and representatives of 13 of the contracting parties to the ICPDR, around 85 participants from all Danube countries, observers and invited guests attended this important event.

On 2-3 June 2017 the sixth Youth Parliament of the Sava River Basin competition was held in Belgrade (Serbia). The motto for this year’s competition was “The Impact of Climate Change on the Lives of the Sava River Basin”. 60 students and teachers from nine secondary schools from the Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia and Bosnia-Herzegovina attended. The Sava Commission is an observer of the ICPDR.

Vienna, 20 March 2017 - Wastewater from homes, cities, industry and agriculture flowing back to nature without being treated or reused pollutes the environment in many regions. Without proper wastewater treatment we are losing valuable nutrients and releasing dangerous substances. Beside significant threats to human health, the impact on water resources and ecosystems is tremendous.

On 15-16 February 2017, Peter Thomson, President of the General Assembly convened a two-day preparatory meeting at the United Nations Headquarters in New York in order to consider the themes for the partnership dialogues and elements for a "Call for Action" in preparation for the June 2017 high-level United Nations Conference to Support the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14, known as the Oceans Conference.

On Monday, 23 January, the European Union takes over the annual Presidency of the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR).
Incoming President Peter Gammeltoft has set three main priorities for his term: strengthening of financial support for the ICPDR, assessing the impact of agricultural activities on the Danube River Basin environment, and increasing the visibility of the ICPDR.

On 6 and 7 December 2016 the ICPDR held its 19th Ordinary Meeting in Vienna.
Beside the heads of delegation and representatives of the 15 contracting parties to the ICPDR, about 60 participants from all Danube countries, observers and invited guests attended this important event.