The Trient valley gushes with springs, streams, torrents, waterfalls and spectacular cascades that ebb or flow depending on season and weather.There are also steeply sloped alpine marshes and high mountain lakes, while its gorges are sought by canyoners worldwide for the extreme and rather awesome trips they provide.

Despite an abundance of water in the alps, however, it wasn't always where it was needed, so the Swiss took deadly risks to build water distribution canals with the most rudimentary means and what ever materials were naturally available on the spot. Called " bisses ", they were dug in mountain sides, bridged in wood or tunneled through rock.The most impressive cling to thousand-feet high cliffsides. Many are still in use, and can be visited, as their upkeep paths often double as hiking trails. The Trient glacier's bisse is readily accessible, easy to walk along, and is a working example of water managment on a world where water, -who gets it for what, how, in wich quantity and of what quality-, is an increasingly pressing issue.

There are many other examples of water management in the area,-the little high-mountain train that serves the valley and beyond, for instance, runs on hydro-electric power, it's reservoir a nearby high-mountain lake. Others in the region are open to the public.

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