Leisure and recreation use at the Enns: Comparative analyses of forms of use, usage claims and conflict potentials on two different river sections

Flowing waters have always had a strong attraction on people and are used as a recreation area and as a backdrop for numerous leisure activities. Especially since the 19th century, however, river landscapes have been greatly altered by human interventions such as riverside constructions, regulations and hydropower utilisation. or natural rivers have become rare. The few remaining sections or the newly revitalised river areas experience high utilisation pressure from recreation seekers, which in turn entails a certain potential for conflict. The aim of this work was to use the example of two river sections of the Enns. analyse the extent of such conflicts of use. Another focus was on the different usage preferences of river users and the classification of their environmental sensitivity. Observations and surveys of river visitors were carried out to address these issues. Heterogeneous, natural structures appear to be crucial for the use of a flowing water, with conflicts between different user groups rarely occurring. The results also demonstrate the importance of free access to flowing waters and a relatively critical attitude towards restrictions of use. At the same time, the sensitivity to ecological disturbances by the users themselves does not seem to be very pronounced. The results of the work show that the recreational function of natural or near-natural river sections is becoming increasingly important. In order to be able to reconcile the different utilisation requirements of recreation seekers both with each other and with the ecological requirements, even more emphasis should be placed on an integrative river management system in the future.