Catchment size, the elevation of the region, gradient or land cover: the catchments and their regional characteristics are often of additional importance in an analysis of Swiss hydrological monitoring data. The catchments of Swiss waterbodies and the catchments of the FOEN hydrometric gauging stations and the major features of the regions are available as a geodataset.
"Topographical catchment areas of Swiss waterbodies" geodataset
The geodataset on topographical catchment areas of Swiss lakes and rivers provides a highly detailed data basis covering the whole of Switzerland. It forms a fixed unit with the digital water network.
The catchment area geodataset can be obtained from the FOEN. The catchment areas can also be viewed online at map.bafu.admin.ch.
The dataset contains a comprehensive mosaic of over 22,000 sub-catchments derived from the topography. It covers Switzerland and the border areas, listing all lakes and rivers with a catchment area greater than 1 or 1.5km2. The sub-catchment areas are structured hierarchically and enable quick and easy analysis of entire catchment areas.
The dataset is a survey of hydrological conditions of interest to the whole of Switzerland. It has no legal effect and in no way constitutes a binding guideline for the definition of catchment areas.
There is also a derivative of the geodataset showing the polygons of the total catchment areas and a series of pre-calculated key figures on land cover and physical geography.
The geodata can be downloaded free of charge from the link below. The documentation accompanying the dataset provides information on the derivation, possible applications and limitations.
"Topographical catchments of the FOEN hydrometric gauging stations" geodataset
Catchment size, the elevation of the region, gradient or land cover: the gauging station catchments and their regional characteristics are often of additional importance in an analysis of Swiss hydrological monitoring data. So that these features do not have to be determined individually in a Geographical Information System (GIS) for the monitoring locations in Switzerland, a prepared dataset is available which already contains this information, making it easier to access:
The "EZG_hydrometrische_Stationen" geodataset shows the topographical catchments of the current FOEN hydrometric gauging stations. It is based on the FOEN’s underlying ‘Topographical catchments of Swiss waterbodies’ geodataset. The dataset contains attribute data tables with various regional features, and the locations of the gauging stations.
The geodata is free to download via the link below. Technical details on the dataset and its potential uses and limitations are included in the documentation.
Further information
Last modification 02.06.2025
