The National Council decides on Wednesday that procedures in the field of renewable energy will be accelerated. To this end, the Environmental Impact Assessment Act (EIA) will be amended. All parties except the FPÖ are expected to agree.
The amendment to the EIA Act ensures that procedures can be handled more efficiently in the future and that unnecessary duplication of research is prevented. A lack of spatial energy planning in a federal state can then no longer stand in the way of the construction of wind turbines. The Ministry of Climate Protection states that the suitability of the location will in any case be tested in the EIA procedure and that the consent of the community will also be obtained.
It will also be abolished that the same question is examined several times in the procedures, for example with regard to the landscape. In addition, project applicants can offer financial compensation in the future and appropriate concepts for soil protection must be submitted. Large surfaces may no longer be concreted in an uncontrolled manner. This applies, for example, to parking spaces.
Gewessler: “The sun does not bill us“
Minister of Climate Protection Leonore Gewessler (Greens) thinks the amended law is an “important and big step for our country”. She spoke of a “sustainable turbo for our electricity system” and that we could no longer be blackmailed with this electricity. “The sun does not charge us in Austria, Vladimir Putin does.”
Last year, for the first time, more renewable than fossil heating systems were installed in Austria. These are mainly heat pumps and solar systems, followed by biomass boilers and process water heat pumps.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
