Austria

Structure and large landscapes

From crisis state to success model

The First Republic of Austria emerged in 1918 from fragments of the Habsburg Monarchy,
which covered more than 676,000 km2. The loss of the First World War was followed by
economic and political crises. Irreconcilable political differences and high unemployment led
to civil war-like conditions, dictatorship and finally annexation by the German Reich under
Hitler.
In contrast, the Second Republic, founded in 1945, was able to recover quickly from the
destruction of the Second World War. Since gaining full sovereignty through the State Treaty
and the declaration of perpetual neutrality in 1955, the democratic Republic of Austria has
been seen as a politically and socially stable and economically successful state. This is also
confirmed by the fact that Austria is fully integrated into international organizations. The
economic success story can be documented by Austria's rise to become one of the top 15
countries in the world in terms of real GDP per capita and the export success of the companies
based in Austria.

AA1: What does the term "neutrality" mean? What consequences does it have for
Austria?
Answer: It means that the country is not taking side in a conflict between other countries,

Legislation and administration

The Republic of Austria consists of nine federal states, which in turn are subdivided into
political districts and municipalities. The 2102 municipalities are the smallest administrative
units; the municipal council is responsible, for example, for local spatial planning, road
administration, security, fire and building police. The municipalities provide important
services of general interest for their citizens: kindergarten, primary and secondary schools and
special schools, water supply, sewage and waste disposal, municipal roads, sports facilities
and playgrounds, rescue services, fire department, nursing and care for the elderly, funding for
local associations, business, tourism and much more. Around 90% of the municipalities'
expenditure is accounted for by such services. They are headed by a mayor who is directly
elected.
District authorities enforce state and federal laws in the respective political districts. These
service points for citizens are responsible for issuing passports, driving licenses and vehicle
registration plates, for issues relating to commercial, water and traffic law, maintaining public
safety and conducting administrative criminal proceedings.

The provinces legislate in the provincial parliaments. Provincial laws deal with nature and
landscape conservation, youth protection, compulsory education, hospitals, social services,
the construction and maintenance of provincial and district roads, hunting and fishing law and
regional planning. Provincial laws can therefore have different provisions from province to
province. The highest executive body is the provincial governor, who forms the provincial
government together with the provincial councilors.

The National Council and Federal Council ensure that legislation applies uniformly
throughout the entire federal territory. The Federal Chancellor and ministers form the
government of the Republic, which shares the highest administrative level with the Federal
President. Since Austria joined the European Union, EU laws must also be implemented.

AA2: There is a separation of powers in Austria. What does this mean and which
institutions belong to the individual powers?

The natural area at a

glance

Of the total area of Austria, 63%

is accounted for by the Eastern
Alps, 11.5% by the Alpine and Carpathian foothills, 11.5% by the south-eastern Alpine
foothills and the Small Hungarian Plain, 10% by the Bohemian Massif of the Mühlviertel and
Waldviertel and 4% by the Vienna Basin. The high proportion of mountainous areas also
explains the relatively low population density of 99 inhabitants/km2 , as only the valleys in
the Alps are permanently populated.

The granite and gneiss highlands (Bohemian Massif)

More than 220 million years ago, the Bohemian Massif, the oldest large landscape in Austria,
was formed as part of the Variscan mountain formation. As this mountain formation has long
since been completed, the mountains were heavily eroded by exogenous forces and now only
appear as low mountain ranges up to 1379 m high (Plöckenstein)
In the south, the granite and gneiss highlands are mostly bordered by the Danube (the
Kürnberg Forest is an exception). The altitude of 600 to 1000 m and the unfavorable soil
conditions mean that the land can largely only be used for livestock farming and forestry,
supplemented by the cultivation of oats, barley, potatoes and hops.

The Alps
The Alps stretch for around 1200 km from the French Riviera to the
Danube near Vienna. The Alps are the highest mountain range
entirely within Europe, with the highest peak being the 4808 m high
Mt. Blanc.
A division into the Western Alps and the lower Eastern Alps is
possible along a line from Lake Constance-Rhine-Splügen Pass-Lake
Como.
If you want to understand the roots of their formation, you have to
go back to the time of the break-up of Pangaea around 200 million
years ago. At that time, a wide ocean, the Tethys, opened up
between Eurasia and Africa or India. Massive calcareous sediments
consisting of shells, corals and other marine animals were
accumulated here. Some of these have been preserved as fossils. As
Africa drifted to the northeast around 50 million years ago, these
limestone packages were pressed together, folded and pushed
hundreds of kilometers on top of each other, and the Alps gradually
rose out of the sea as a chain of islands due to subduction. The
limestone packages broke apart and slid north and south to form
today's limestone Alps. In the middle, crystalline rocks of the
Central Alps emerged.
The mountain formation was accompanied by volcanism. Further
uplift pushed the sea back, while at the same time decay products
from the growing Alps filled the forelands and basins. The drift of
Africa towards the northeast continues to this day, although
tectonic activity has shifted to the Mediterranean region. Severe
earthquakes frequently occur on the Apennine, Balkan and Asia
Minor peninsulas, as evidenced by the active volcanoes Vesuvius,
Etna and Stromboli.
The present, rugged shape of the Alps was created by millions of
years of river erosion and the erosive force of the glaciers of the Ice
Age. River valleys were reshaped into wide trough valleys, and
summit regions were compressed into steep ridges and pyramids in
the course of karst formation.

The Eastern Alps can be divided into structural units or rock zones
running from west to east:
 Flysch zone
 Northern Limestone Alps
 Graywacke zone
 Central Alps
 Southern Alps

Also in a west-easterly direction, rivers and glaciers have northern

and southern Langstalfurche. They represent the inner-alpine
settlement and economic axes and are used as the most important
traffic routes.
Economically, the Alps have long been characterized by agriculture,
forestry and mining. Even in Celtic and Roman times, salt from the
Northern Limestone Alps and iron from the greywacke zone of the
Eisenerz Alps and from Hüttenberg in Carinthia were coveted trade
goods.
While the main valleys such as the Inn, Salzach, Rhine, Mur-Mürztal
and Drautal valleys received an economic boost from
industrialization, the burgeoning tourism industry also brought
increasing prosperity to the Alpine side valleys from the 1960s
onwards. Where mountain farmers once struggled to eke out a
meagre existence, today ski lifts transport millions of people to the
summits of the Alps in summer and winter. Today, the Alps are the
best developed High mountains of the earth.

Forelands, basins and plains

They were originally marine areas and were filled in by sediments
and the weathering products of the Alps - transported by rivers. On
the surface there are often huge gravel and sand bodies into which
the rivers have cut. These are huge bodies of groundwater that are
used by the municipalities to produce drinking water. In many
places, thermal springs bear witness to tectonic faults underground.
The agricultural and most important industrial core areas of Austria
are located here.

The northern foothills of the Alps

The northern Alpine foreland stretches in a wedge shape between
the Inn in Upper Austria and the Danube near Vienna. The rivers
flowing northwards from the Alps have pushed the Danube almost
everywhere to the edge of the Bohemian Massif and formed terraced
landscapes.
The mighty square farms of the Traun-Enns plateau and the
Mostviertel bear witness to the good usability of the loamy soils and
the resulting prosperity

The Carpathian Foreland

Beyond the Danube, the Alpine foothills merge into the Carpathian
foothills. Here in the western Weinviertel, viticulture has a long
tradition and the loess provides the necessary nutrients. Loess is
fine grains of rock carried by the wind, which were blown out of river
valleys near glaciated areas during the cold periods and often
deposited meters high. Due to its richness in nutrients and its ideal
water storage capacity, loess forms particularly good, fertile soils.
Its distribution area in Europe extends from northern France through
Central Europe to the Ukraine.

The Vienna Basin

This is a clod of the earth's crust that sank up to 6000 m during the
formation of the Alps and was filled with marine and river deposits.
The largest oil and gas deposits in Austria are located in the
northern Vienna Basin, the eastern Weinviertel hills.
Along the western edge of the Vienna Basin towards the foothills of
the Eastern Alps, the thermal spa line represents a clear break. Even
in imperial times, the warm springs of Baden near Vienna provided
the basis for a first-class spa resort. While the southern Vienna
Basin was one of the early industrialized areas of Austria, the
northern basin was dominated by agriculture. The high summer
temperatures and the nutrient-rich loess soil allow for high-yield
arable farming and viticulture. The Marchfeld is considered the most
suitable agricultural area in Austria, where fresh vegetables are
produced primarily for the greater Vienna area.

The south-eastern Alpine foothills

The south-eastern Alpine foothills stretch from northern Burgenland
to south-western Styria. It is a hilly region that is heavily dissected
by rivers. More than 50 volcanic ruins are evidence of tectonic
activity during the formation of the Alps. For the same reason,
numerous thermal spas can be found here, making south-eastern
Styria and southern Burgenland a wellness and thermal spa region.
number one in Austria. The mild climate enables wine and fruit
growing as well as the cultivation of special crops.
The Little Hungarian (Pannonian) Plain
To the east of the Leitha Mountains begins the Small Hungarian
Plain (also known as the Pannonian Plain), a huge subsidence area
that extends as far as the Carpathian Arc in Romania. These are the
westernmost outliers of steppe areas. Further characteristics are
the wide plains and lakes without outlets such as Lake Neusiedl. It
is the second largest lake in Austria after Lake Constance. As a
typical steppe lake, it is barely 2 m deep, has a muddy subsoil and
slightly salty water. Periods of low rainfall have led to the lake
drying out completely on several occasions. Up to 300 sunny days a
year and an annual rainfall of less than 600 mm are ideal for
viticulture.

AA3: Forelands and basins: Match the topographical region names

mentioned in the box
with the numbers on

5 Eferding Basin
8 Eisenwurzen
3 House
pressure(Hausr
uck)
1 Ibmer Moor
4 Innviertel
19 Klagenfurt
Basin
10 Machland
15 Marchfeld
9 Mostviertel
the map. 6 Mühlviertel
17 East Styrian hill
country
2 Salzkammergut
16 Seewinkel
7 Traun-Enns
plate
13 Tullnerfeld
12 Wachau
11 Waldviertel
14 Weinviertel
18 West Styrian
hill country