Nowadays, more and more people see their living space threatened by the hazardous features of their environment. This has led, an the one hand, to increased demands for safety. Consequently, the state has to guarantee this safety. On the other hand, there is an increased eagerness to seek risk in the pursuit of leisure. Moreover, the value of the objects to be protected is considerable higher than it was a few years ago. These facts help to explain why people are calling for more protection from natural hazards. They indicate, however, that conventional defences against hazards must be replaced by a new risk management which tries to find solutions that are economically, ecologically and socially tolerable. Integral risik management provides one raute to achieving this goal.