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Vienna, 27 February 2012. The ICPDR and the International River Foundation (IRF) signed a Memorandum of Understanding to cooperate in programmes and activities that promote and strengthen efforts towards good river basin management in Europe and throughout the world.

Climate change poses a serious threat to our ability to manage our water resources in the Danube River Basin. In response, the ICPDR updated its Strategy on Adaptation to Climate Change in 2018 based on the most recent research in the field.

The Secretariat of the ICPDR is located at the United Nations Office at Vienna (UNOV). A team of approximately 10 staff members support the work of the ICPDR and its expert & task groups, assist with project development and implementation, and maintains the ICPDR's 'DANUBIS' information system.

The ICPDR comprises 15 Contracting Parties who have committed themselves to implement the Danube River Protection Convention.

The final goals are to co-operate on fundamental water management issues and to take all appropriate legal, administrative and technical measures to maintain and improve the quality of the Danube River and its environment.

Accidental pollution in the Danube River Basin can cause widespread damage to the environment, and endanger the health of local people and the state of local economies downstream. This was exemplified by the effects of the Baia Mare cyanide spill in Romania in 2000 or by the Hungarian redsludge accident at Ajka in 2010. The ICPDR is working to prevent accidental pollution and to improve response capability by compiling an inventory of all relevant "Accident Risk Spots".

Organic pollution has been on the rise in the Danube over the last century, as human activities have resulted in increasing loads of wastewater rich in organic matter. The most serious organic pollution problems occur in tributaries that regularly receive untreated or inadequately treated wastewater from industrial plants and municipalities. Thanks to the significant improvement of wastewater infrastructure and services in the Danube countries, the basin-wide organic emissions reduced by 60% since the mid 2000s.

Hazardous substances can remain in the environment for a very long time, and harm ecosystems and human health. Although monitoring indicates that the loads of some substances have been reduced in recent years, many problems still persist. The increasing number of these man-made substances present in the environment is a matter of concern, and calls for the application of the precautionary principle.