Aerial view of a river power plant, a forested area in the foreground and agricultural fields in the background.

Project News

Groundbreaking ceremony for the longest fish passage on the Inn River

Less than two years after the opening of the fish passing at the Braunau-Simbach power plant on the Inn River, construction of the longest fish passage on the Inn River began on May 8, 2026, at the Egglfing-Obernberg power plant. As part of the EU LIFE project “Riverscape Lower Inn,” VERBUND is constructing a 5.8-kilometer-long near-natural bypass channel featuring new spawning and refuge areas for various fish species, as well as valuable habitats for riparian plants and other wildlife.

The ecological design, featuring gravel banks, shallow water zones, and deadwood, creates a diverse aquatic habitat and supports, among other species, the huchen during its migration. Completion is scheduled for 2027 and will make a significant contribution to preserving biodiversity in the Lower Inn.

Groundbreaking ceremony
Shovel with engraved inscription “Verbund – Fish Passage KW Egglfing-Obernberg 8.5.2026” stuck in a pile of sand during the groundbreaking ceremony for the fish passage at the Egglfing-Obernberg power plant.

Successful dam maintenance boosts the red-backed shrike population along the lower Inn

As part of the EU-funded “LIFE Riverscape Lower Inn” project, the ecological restoration of VERBUND’s power plant dams has achieved impressive results. The number of red-backed shrike breeding territories has risen from 10 to 38 since 2022, and the population has quadrupled thanks to targeted measures.

This commitment not only strengthens the protection of the red-backed shrike but also benefits numerous other species and sustainably improves biodiversity along the lower Inn.

Successful species conservation on the River Inn

Restoration of the Aufhausener Lacke completed

VERBUND began restoring the Aufhausener Lacke near the Egglfing-Obernberg Inn power plant in autumn 2024 as part of the LIFE Riverscape Lower Inn nature conservation project. The work was completed at the end of March 2025 and the new still water body was flooded. 

More Aufhausener Lacke

Our floodplain focus

December 2024

Work on the new Aufhausener Lacke is making progress:

The ‘new’ Aufhausener Lacke is being developed as a near-natural floodplain water body. Once completed, the still water body will remain in existence for decades and serve as a valuable habitat for fish and water birds as well as amphibians and insects in the Inn floodplains. It will be equipped with shallow water zones and deep areas.
By connecting the deep zone to the Inn, fish will also be able to use the Aufhausener Lacke as a habitat again. And the shallow water areas will once again provide a perfect environment for fish larvae and juvenile fish as well as for waterfowl.

Aufhausener Lacke

First breeding record of the red-necked grebe on the Inn since the 19th century

The sightings took place between May and July 2024. The ecologists commissioned by VERBUND were even able to observe a pair of red-necked grebes mating. Afterwards, only the male was present in front of the reeds, suggesting that the female was hiding near the nest, as is usual for this species.

‘The pleasing sighting of the red-necked grebe shows how important intact floodplain waters are for water birds. As part of the ‘Riverscape Lower Inn’ nature conservation project, VERBUND is ensuring that there will be even more and better breeding habitats for the red-necked grebe and other birds along the Inn in the future,’ says VERBUND project manager Roland Schmalfuß.

Egglfing-Obernberg Inn power station receives a fish migration aid

21 October 2024

Preparatory work starts in October

A few weeks after the opening of the Braunau Simbach fish migration aid, VERBUND is starting preparatory work for the next bypass water around 30 kilometres downstream at the Egglfing-Obernberg Inn power plant. This nature conservation project is also part of the EU LIFE project ‘Riverscape Lower Inn’, which further promotes the near-natural development of the river landscape on the Lower Inn.

In 2025, construction work will begin on the largest near-natural bypass on the Inn to date with a length of 5.8 kilometres. The ground-breaking ceremony for this pioneering nature conservation project is expected to take place in spring next year. Before this can happen, the entire construction site must be cleared. The necessary clearing work will begin at the end of October and is scheduled to last until the end of February. The remaining preparatory measures will be completed by the end of May 2025 at the latest.

As a first measure, hollow trees that serve as valuable habitats will be carefully removed and reintegrated into nature at other suitable locations. All of the work will be carried out in close coordination and under the supervision of an ecological construction supervisor and has been agreed with the authorities.

Read press release
The image shows the kick-off for the new fish pass at the Egglfing-Obernberg power plant. In the foreground is a wooden structure in the water with an EU flag bearing "Life". Trees at sunset are visible in the background.

Fish migration aid opened at the Braunau-Simbach Inn power plant

23. September 2024: Next milestone reached in establishing river continuity on the Inn

After just under a year of construction, the new fish migration aid enables all species of fish in the River Inn to swim past the Braunau-Simbach power plant or stay there for a while. For the first time since the construction of the power plant, the new bypass water allows them to freely reach the tributaries or floodplain waters again. The bypass also provides new habitats: wood, stones and above all gravel form typical river structures in the water and on the banks. Habitats are created for fish, birds, insects and amphibians. In addition to the fish migration aid, a natural riverbank was created on the Inn downstream of the power station. Fish migration and habitat development are documented scientifically on an ongoing basis through extensive monitoring.

Johann Springer (Mayor of Kirchdorf), Michael Amerer (VERBUND Wasserkraft Managing Director), Kurt Vallée (Deputy District Administrator of the Rottal-Inn district), Karl Heinz Gruber (VERBUND Wasserkraft Managing Director), Klaus Schmid (Mayor of Simbach), Johannes Waidbacher (Mayor of Braunau) hold the LIFE flag together. In the background you can see the fish migration aid surrounded by trees in bright green.

Braunau-Simbach fish migration aid completed

The fish migration aid at the Braunau-Simbach Inn power plant was completed in July 2024. The video shows the progression from its construction and commissioning to the completion of the fish bypass.

Trial operation started for Fish migration aid at the Braunau-Simbach Inn power plant

July 2024: First trial carried out successfully!

After a construction period of around one year, the new fish migration aid at the Braunau-Simbach Inn power plant has been completed and was filled with water for the first time on July 10, 2024.

Trial operation begins with the first water dotation. During this time, all relevant discharge scenarios are tested. During the initial flooding, the new water bed is slowly filled with a small amount of water and, once the bed is saturated, a continuous discharge situation begins to develop. In addition to the installed sealing elements, the sediment load of the Inn causes a slow process of self-sealing in the new watercourse.

During trial operation, the flow conditions at different discharge volumes are checked and, if necessary, the watercourse is reworked together with the construction supervisor. The bypass has a variety of structures such as gravel zones, pieces of wood and stones as habitat features. The embankments of the stream bed, which will be increasingly integrated into the existing landscape, serve as a habitat for birds and insects.

Once the trial operation has been completed successfully, the flow rate of the new, three-kilometre-long fish migration aid will be determined according to the seasons with discharges of between 2,000 and 6,000 l/s.

The official opening and commissioning is planned as part of an open day on September 21, 2024. By then the remaining work on the accompanying paths and the installation of railings will be completed.

Natura 2000 Day: District President visits new Braunau-Simbach bypass watercourse

On May 21, 2024, leading decision-makers from Bavaria and Upper Austria were informed about the construction progress of the new bypass watercourse at the VERBUND Braunau-Simbach power plant as part of the Natura 2000 Day.

from left to right - Christoph Stein, Bavarian State Ministry for the Environment and Consumer Protection - Johann Springer, Mayor of Kirchdorf am Inn - District Administrator Raimund Kneidinger (Passau district) - Rainer Haselbeck, District President of Lower Bavaria - Deputy District Administrator of Rottall-Inn Edeltraud Plattner - Günter Winterstätter, Braunau am Inn town councillor - Gerold Bauer, 3rd Mayor of Ering am Inn - Herfried Harreiter, VERBUND Hydropower

Group of eight individuals dressed in a mix of formal and casual attire, standing on a gravel ground with a natural forest backdrop.

Natura-2000 Family Day

May 21st, 2024

Floodplain adventure afternoon with the Natura 2000 rally

On May 21, 2024, a floodplain adventure afternoon for families will take place at the Waldsee in Kirchdorf am Inn (Bavaria) around the Braunau-Simbach Inn power plant. Young and old can discover the ecological measures implemented in the river landscape as part of the EU LIFE Riverscape Lower Inn project and experience them with the "Natura 2000 Rally".

Throughout the area there are informative and entertaining experience stations:

  • Learn more about the "LIFE Riverscape Lower Inn" project with VERBUND and explore the new bypass water at the Braunau-Simbach power plant with guided tours.

  • Naturium on the Inn

  • Children's adventure station of the Bavarian Academy for Nature Conservation and Landscape Management

  • Life in the Inn at the bypass with fish you can touch

  • Meadow habitat at and on the Inn dams

  • Observing birds at the forest lake with spotting scopes

VERBUND, the Bavarian Academy for Nature Conservation and Landscape Management (ANL) and the Naturium am Inn are the organizers of the action day to mark European Natura 2000 Day.

Hikers and a cyclist on a path next to a muddy river winding through a wooded landscape, in sunny weather.

Impressions from 2023

Individual in a blue tee-shirt proudly holding a large fish in their hands.
Individuals in casual attire conversing under a canopy with "Verbund" signage next to a van.
Informational flyers and brochures on a wooden table outdoors, weighted down with stones.
Individual in a blue tee-shirt measuring a small, green fish over a plastic tub.

LIFE Riverscape Lower Inn realizes improvements for plants and animals with the closure of the "ice channel".

March 2024

The "ice channel" is a connection between the main branch of the Inn and an oxbow lake, also known as the "Heitzinger Bucht". Through this connection, around 8,000 m³ of fine sediment enter the old Inn water system every year, causing turbidity and sedimentation. The habitats now benefit from the closure of the ice channel. Greater depths of visibility and higher water temperatures in the oxbow lakes will encourage the growth of aquatic plants and improve the habitat for bird, amphibian, fish and insect species.

Aerial view of a winding river with murky water around a land spit with trees, a path and a pile of stones are visible.

Groundbreaking for fish pass at Braunau-Simbach

July 2023

Start of construction on the near-natural bypass river of the Braunau-Simbach power plant: the dynamic design of the bypass river offers space for protecting species diversity in and around the water.

Read press release
Group of individuals at a groundbreaking ceremony at a construction site with an excavator and informational signs in the background.

Renaturation at VERBUND's Ering-Frauenstein power plant

November 2022

VERBUND has implemented an exemplary project for river continuity and habitats at the Ering-Frauenstein power plant. The "Passability and Habitat" project, implemented by VERBUND at the Ering-Frauenstein power plant, was exemplary and largely responsible for the creation of LIFE Riverscape Lower Inn.

Watch video on YouTube
: A colorful butterfly perches on light purple blooming flowers against a blurred green background.

Preparatory work

November 2021 - February 2022

Initial work for ecological measures for connecting waterways, wetland dynamics and habitats on land and in the water over a length of approx. 3.0 km

Read press release
Aerial view of a run-of-river power plant on a river, surrounded by farmland on a sunny day.

Inn river bank restoration in the area of the Mattig estuary

November 2021

The Inn bank in the area of the Mattig estuary is now being dismantled as a contribution to the INTERREG project “INNsieme”.

Read press release INNsieme project
A natural water area surrounded by trees and reeds.
Sunset above a meandering river flowing through a green landscape, with soft sunlight illuminating the water.

Project Launch (October 2020)

As a power plant operator, VERBUND and its project partners – the government of Lower Bavaria, the conservation department of the office of the Upper Austrian provincial government, and the provincial fishery associations of Upper Austria and Bavaria – applied for the EU-LIFE nature project “LIFE Riverscape Lower Inn” and received a funding commitment from the EU.
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