The implementation of Natura 2000 in Austria—A European policy in a federal system
Mountain lake in Austria. Source: A_Lein / Adobe Stock
This study analyses how the EU’s Natura 2000 network has been implemented in Austria. It applies implementation theory to explain delays and differing outcomes across federal states, highlighting the role of administrative capacity, institutional pressures, compliance culture, and stakeholder dynamics. Findings reveal three modes of implementation and ongoing challenges to policy coherence.
The implementation of Natura 2000 in Austria illustrates how EU policies can diverge in practice across Member States. Drawing on 25 years of policy processes and literature, the study develops a framework of explanatory factors – problem pressure, administrative capacity, institutional change, and compliance culture. Analysing seven Austrian federal states, it identifies three modes of implementation: landowner-oriented, compromise-oriented, and top-down. These modes show how governance structures, local discretion, and stakeholder involvement shape results. Delays, fragmented outputs, and insufficient coherence at the EU level underline the complexity of policy implementation in biodiversity conservation.
- Implementation
- Policy Actors
- Austria