Like many regions across Europe, Austria is experiencing increasingly extreme weather conditions. Long periods of drought and heat are followed more and more frequently by intense heavy rainfall events, during which enormous amounts of precipitation fall within a very short period of time. Previously dried-out soils often have only a limited capacity to absorb these large volumes of water, causing it to flow over the surface and accumulate rapidly. At the same time, sealed surfaces in residential areas further hinder natural infiltration into the ground.