Distinctions

IUCN Recognition

The legal responsibility to declare an area as national park lies with the relevant authority, thus in the case of the Thayatal, it is the Lower Austrian Government. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) set criteria for national parks for the first time in 1962 and for many years now, it has been in charge of compiling the UN list of protected areas. An IUCN classification as national park is therefore like a trademark for protected areas.

Normally the classification is handled by the World Conservation Monitoring in Cambridge upon a recommendation from national authorities. The Thayatal is the first national park in the world to have been evaluated on site by IUCN experts. Moreover, the Thayatal, together with the National Park Hohe Tauern - Carinthia, was also for the first time in the IUCN's history awarded a decree. The award ceremony took place on 18 August 2001 in Hardegg.

More about the IUCN under www.iucn.org/wcpa

European Diploma of the Council of Europe

Since 1965 the Council of Europe (France) has been granting the European Diploma to protected, natural and semi-natural areas and landscapes of special European importance for the preservation of biological, geological and landscape diversity. The Diploma may be renewed by the Council of Europe every five years on the basis of an on-the-spot appraisal. The Národni Park Podyjí was awarded the European Diploma in 2000, followed by the Thayatal in 2003. Upon the latest appraisal, the Diploma has been renewed for another five years (2008-2013).

More about he European Diploma

TOP destination in Lower Austria

Since 2005 the National Park Thayatal has been one of the TOP 40 excursion sites in Lower Austria. This is also based on an evaluation that focussed on offers, equipment and visitors service. More about the TOP excursion sites under

www.ausflug.at

Transborder Cooperation - EUROPARC

In 2007 both national parks Thayatal and Podyjí underwent an assessment of the efficiency and quality of their transborder cooperation. Experts praised the joint efforts and the two national parks were awarded a diploma.

www.europarc.org

Josef-Schöffl-Prize for special achievements in nature conservation

In 2008 the Government of Lower Austria awarded Mr. Norbert Kellner, former mayor and long-standing chairman of the National Park's advisory board, the highest recognition in the field of nature conservation: the Josef-Schöffl-Prize, thus expressing their appreciation for Norbert Kellner's efforts in the establishment of a national park Thayatal.