In June, the decision on Austria’s first soil protection strategy was postponed. The Greens then wanted more than the ÖVP and are now continuing their mobilization for soil protection. In the fall, they want to achieve a mandatory limitation of land use to 2.5 hectares per day, it said on Tuesday.
Austria is one of the countries in Europe with the highest land consumption. Almost twelve hectares of land are cultivated every day, which corresponds to 16 football fields. This is considerably more than the upper limit of 2.5 hectares per day that the Greens are currently demanding. “For us, this soil protection is in our DNA,” Secretary-General Olga Voglauer said at a press conference on Tuesday. It is about climate protection, generally intact nature and ‘climate happiness’.
The well-being of everyone should be more important than the profits of individuals. The Greens did not want half measures, but commitment, it was said. A good strategy will be available nationwide by the fall, Voglauer said optimistically.
Opposition: Greens themselves vote against resolutions
The opposition reacted critically to the Greens’ plan. “The Greens want to make soil protection their flag, but when it comes to specific decisions, they vote against,” said Julia Herr, SPÖ vice-president and environmental spokesperson. An example is the national vacancy levy to use existing housing instead of concrete over new areas.
The NEOS in turn criticized the lack of a law to protect the climate. “Anyone who has not drafted a climate protection law for three and a half years and has just postponed the end of unbridled land use indefinitely cannot act as a climate savior,” said NEOS climate and environment spokesman Michael Bernhard in a broadcast. For FPÖ Secretary General Michael Schnedlitz, the Greens are “a pure burden, exclusion, commandment and prohibition party”.
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.
