Safe water

In Vienna’s City Hall in mid December 2008, representatives of six European capitals – Belgrade, Cracow, Ljubljana, Moscow, Vienna and Zagreb – signed a memorandum on water supply and disposal. The memorandum was signed for Vienna by Gerhard Weber, Director General of Urban Planning, Development and Construction. The purpose of the memorandum is to facilitate cooperation in the public services sector with respect to supply security, consistent quality and efficiency.

The dialogue forum focused on the theme of “urban and environmental technologies – municipal and/or private, in the light of Vienna’s water supply and disposal.” Vienna’s Director General of Urban Planning, Development and Construction Gerhard Weber delivered a keynote address entitled “Public services – public welfare: an obligation for cities?”. This was followed by statements made by representatives of five of Vienna’s partner cities:

Supply security

Vienna’s priority has been clear for years: supplying the people of Vienna with water – and of course disposing of waste water – must remain in the hands of the City of Vienna in the future too: this is the only way to ensure environmental quality in the long term. Water supplies are an essential element of the city's public services, and the main priority must therefore be to protect the quality and quantity of Vienna's water resources.

The theme of water supplies and disposal as an integral part of Vienna’s public services was also the main focus of a contribution presented by Hans Sailer, head of the Environmental Technology Group at Vienna's Department of Urban Planning, Development and Construction.

The programme of the forum also included a visit to the waste disposal plant at Vienna Simmering and the water reservoir at Rosenhügel. This was rounded out by a programme for visiting journalists covering Vienna's major supply and disposal facilities, like the sewage purification plant, Spittelau waste incineration plant and Cable Runner, a low-cost means of laying glass fibre cables in the existing sewer network.




As requested by all those attending, Director General of Urban Planning, Development and Construction Gerhard Weber announced that the dialogue forums would be continued in the years to come.

The Vienna dialogue forum provided an opportunity for an intensive discussion of the manifestations of public services in the field of “water supplies and disposal”, and ended with the delegates signing the following memorandum:

“The water supply and waste water disposal services of the cities taking part are characterized by a wide diversity based on long established traditions. This diversity must be maintained.

For several years now, the future of our water supplies has been the subject of controversy. There are many in Europe who favour of greater liberalization. The purpose of such liberalization is to open up public water supply facilities to the benefit of private suppliers.

Water is a natural monopoly. Any measures aimed at diluting this monopoly will result in rising prices for the consumer.



As shown by the examples of England, Wales and France, liberalization of the water sector means a deterioration in quality and efficiency coupled with a loss of expertise and jobs. It is virtually impossible to reverse this liberalization.

On the basis of the above circumstances, the delegates attending this dialogue forum agree that the traditionally established forms of public supply service in the field of water supply and waster water disposal under the direct control of cities or relevant regional administrative bodies are a guarantee of reliable supplies, quality and efficiency in the best interests of the people. This situation must be maintained.”




Public services: Responsibility of governments to provide the goods and services necessary for a meaningful human existence – so-called basic services. The administration of such services includes the provision of public facilities for the community, such as transport and traffic systems, gas, water and electricity supplies, garbage services, waste water disposal, educational and cultural facilities, hospitals, cemeteries, public baths, etc. (infrastructure). The majority of these are services provided by municipal bodies.