The First Vienna Mountain Spring Pipeline (I. Wiener Hochquellenwasserleitung) is a major part of Vienna's water supply and was the first source of safe drinking water for that city. The 95 km long line was opened on 24 October 1873, after four years of construction. Today, it delivers 62 million cubic meters of water per year (53% of Vienna's total supply in 2007). The water comes from high springs in the Rax and Schneeberg areas in Southern Lower Austria and Styria.
History
Beginnings to 1910
The reason for its creation
Vienna's water supply originally came from private wells. In the absence of a functioning sewer system, the quality of the groundwater went from bad to worse, triggering disease and epidemics. Reinforced water pipes were built, but these primarily benefitted the wealthy and large institutions. Most of the population had to rely on spouts or fountains attached to wells.
The first water pipe that provided greater coverage was built in 1803-1804, bringing water from Hütteldorf. Vienna was growing too fast for the supply to be sufficient so, in 1836, the Emperor Ferdinand Aqueduct was built. It provided artificially filtered water from the Danube Canal. Initially, the water quality was acceptable, but the effects of the filtering gradually diminished and the health risk returned. Demand also continued to exceed supply.
During the late 1850s, several projects to divert water from other sources were proposed, and studies were made to calculate the amount of water that would be required. These studies considered not only drinking water, but industry, irrigation, road sprinkling, fountains and bathing facilities as well.
Search for a source
A primary consideration was that the water should originate at a high altitude, so that gravity, rather than pumps, would be sufficient to the task. The Traisen was considered first, and rejected, because of high water temperatures during the summer and concerns about its purity. The Pitten, Schwarza and the Leitha were subsequently rejected for similar reasons. The Fischa was rejected because of concerns about the companies that used the river as a power source and the possibility of contamination from ammonia-based fertilizers. Attention finally turned to the area between Rax, Schneeberg and Würflach.
The data collected from these studies were summarized by the City Planning Authority and presented to the City Council on 31 July 1861. Later, on 1 December 1861, foreign and domestic engineering companies were invited to submit plans and bids for the proposed project. Twelve offers were presented and various sources were suggested; two of which focused on the Rax-Schneeberg area.
Establishment of the Water Supply Commission
On 21 November 1862, the City Council established a twelve-member commission to carry out the necessary surveys and paperwork. Among the commission's members were Cajetan Felder (an entomologist), Ludwig Förster (an architect) and August Zang (a publisher). Eduard Suess (a geologist) was appointed to replace Förster upon the latter's death in 1863. In the spring of that year, the commission began a detailed examination of the proposed sites and projects. Their studies extended higher and higher, finally examining the area around Höllental, which they declared to be suitable for the project's purposes.
The final "Report on the surveys of the Water Supply Commission of the Municipal Council of the City of Vienna" was written by Suess in 1864 and published by the Council. The report concluded that the three sources of Kaiserbrunnen, Stixenstein and Alta would supply high quality water and, even though it was longer than the route to Fischa, would be more cost-effective because no pump station would be necessary. The report was submitted to a group of experts and verified on 6 July 1864. The Imperial Society of Physicians gave their support to the final proposal and it was ratified by the Council on 12 July by a vote of 94 to 2.
The beginning of detailed planning
Those involved in the planning were divided in two groups. The First Department was responsible for the source of the pipeline and the reservoir. The Second Department oversaw the pipeline route and work within the Vienna city limits. The work was done under the direction of Carl Junker, a civil engineer, and Karl Gabriel, the City Engineer.