The policy recommendations on lakeshores provide an overview of the sustainable management of lakeshore zones, taking into account the existing intensive use claims and sustainability conflicts, and are aimed at experts from administrations, planning and consulting offices, and applied research.

The shores of many central European lakes are subject to considerable hydromorphological impairments that conflict with the environmental objectives of the EC Water Framework Directive (WFD) and endanger the UNESCO World Heritage Site ‘Prehistoric Lake Dwellings around the Alps’. In an interdisciplinary project, working techniques and strategies were developed, on the basis of the example of Upper Lake Constance, with which the impairments can be analysed, and minimised, e.g. by erosion protection and restoration measures. The focus is on classification and evaluation procedures of the relevant structural features in the littoral, the analysis of ship and wind waves, currents and suspension transport modelling, the measurement of bed transport and the solid matter budget. Important methods are: Measurements and long-term monitoring of lake bed erosion and sediment accumulation in the shallow water zone, an underwater geo radar for the exploration of the sediment stratigraphy, the functionality and application of the autonomous measuring platform ‘Hydrocrawler’ as well as the effects on submerged aquatic plants (macrophytes), bottom animals (macrozoobenthos) and the preservation status of the underwater monuments.

The project results are summarized in ten individual contributions. From this, recommendations for action are derived which can also be applied to other Alpine lakes and beyond.