Auswirkungen des demografischen Wandels auf das Hochwasserrisikomanagement in Österreich: Relevanz und Empfehlungen aus der Perspektive von Expert*innen aus dem Gesundheits- und Sozialbereich

Demographic change is very complex and difficult challenge for our society. Demographic change has become a crucial problem for many regions within in Austria. We expect a strong impact and pressure on the current social infrastructure across the country depending on the population change as householders are becoming more heterogeneous because of international migration, low birth rates, and ageing. However, the impact might be different for the regions as some regions might gain, some others might lose from this future development. This paper analyzes the effects and linkages of demographic change on flood risk management. The paper selected 17 experts from the health and care sector across the country with the aim to analyze their awareness, perspective and understanding of the interlinkages between demographic change, flood risk management and their influence on the current social infrastructure. The results show that there exists a high awareness of the problem, but on a very superficially touch upon. The main reason is the current lack of policy integration and co-operation between the various disciplines, which in turn means that the goal of “health-in-all policies” is at risk.