‘Have you seen Vienna at night? Have you already experienced that?” – With this song the Austrian popper Rainhard Fendrich advertised Vienna in the eighties. For decades, beautiful buildings and monuments in the Danube metropolis and in many other communities were put in the spotlight after sunset. But that should be over now because of Putin’s war.
Stephan Pernkopf, Deputy for Energy of Lower Austria, is taking an initiative to save energy during the crisis. He calls for a “curfew” for unnecessary electricity and gas consumption. For example, it is checked whether it is necessary to illuminate public buildings or parking lots all night.
“The least I can see is that, for example, shopping centers and their parking lots and shop windows should be brightly lit. Energy that we need elsewhere is often unnecessarily wasted here. Here too, in times of crisis, a light curfew must be taken into account,” explains Deputy Governor Pernkopf.
Conversion to LED particularly energy-saving
Churches and street lighting are also being turned back. Johannes Pressl, President of the Municipal Association of Lower Austria: “You can achieve a lot by converting street lighting to LED: in Lower Austria, every second lantern burns in an energy-saving way.”
In Vienna, savings of 60 percent have been achieved since the conversion of street lamps and traffic lighting systems to LEDs five years ago. Due to the uncertainty about future gas deliveries, further measures are being considered.
Questions about meaning are now being investigated
The Association of Municipalities can benefit greatly from the proposal from Lower Austria. This includes lowering the temperature in buildings. Questions arise such as: Do I need hot water in public buildings now? Do swimming pools need to be heated during times like these? What about the spotlight? That’s all being checked now. Meanwhile, the federal real estate company is working on ways to operate its buildings in a more resource-efficient manner.
„Lights out“ at the world’s largest climate action
The annual Earth Hour shows what it looks like when the lights go out in beautiful buildings such as Schönbrunn Palace. As part of the world’s largest climate campaign, the lights go out for an hour in your own four walls or on monuments and official buildings.
Not only good for saving energy, a dark night sky allows us to sleep better and protects the animal world. The conservationists Godfather of the Night also fight against “light pollution” in cities.
Source: Krone
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