Vízügyi Közlemények, 2004 (86. évfolyam)
1-2. füzet - Rövidebb tanulmányok, közlemények, beszámolók
308 Tóth G.-Majd án J. River training works of the River Mura at the Austrian-Hungarian border (1867-1880) by Gábor TÓTH and János MAJDAN civil engineers This study deals with the frequently occurring river training problems of transboundary rivers, using the case of the River Mura. These were especially important in the era when river regulation and flood control played a central role. There is some time to go until the full review of the history of the regulation of the River Mura will be made. Nevertheless, our study, covering only a shorter period of time, may be suitable for presenting the organisational difficulties and problems of this era. The river training works of the River Mura at the Austrian-Hungarian border were explored on the basis of the memorandums of county-assemblies, using also maps and drawings of the era concerned. In this area the River Mura exhibits a transversally eroding meandering scheme, with the meaning that the river bends are growing. The growth of the river bends is done on the expense of the neighbouring agricultural land, thus endangering the agricultural production of the settlements of this vicinity. Therefore the most important task was to cut-off the meanders and to force the river with appropriate training structures into a permanent channel. To solve these tasks there was a need for close co-operation between the two banks of the river, which is especially important in the case of border rivers. Figure 3 shows well this situation, as formed on the Austrian-Hungarian common reach of the River Mura. The bend cut-offs could be usually made on the territory of the other country and to do so one needed the approval of all settlements and organisations concerned. The situation was further aggravated by the fact that in Austrian territory the river regulation was completed in the 1850-ies, thus accelerating the flow velocity in Hungarian territory. Consequently the regulation works of the Hungarian side could not perform their functions and it was nearly impossible to maintain them. The public-administration of the two countries differed from each other to such an extent, which prevented good communication between the counties in Austria and Hungary. The State proposed the establishment of flood-control associations instead of using central national financing. In this study we also discuss the causes, which prevented the successful operation of these associations. The regulation of the River Mura faced thus such problems that needed a careful unified concept, but this was impossible to make in the lack of appropriate state financing. Consequently in the period investigated the damages caused by the River Mura were not decreased and the arable land was further diminishing due to the collapses of river banks.
