Significantly more photovoltaics, energy advice, a farm shop in the city, more repair offers, a dedicated climate officer in the city office, traffic calming including car-free days, cooling trees in the city center, the strengthening of public transport – and much more. Gmunden’s climate strategy, which was developed in workshops over the past few months under the direction of Deputy Mayor Uli Feichtinger (Greens) and with the involvement of the population and representatives of all political committees, comprises a total of 16 specific points. In its most recent meeting, the municipal council approved the package with a large majority (only the FPÖ and three ÖVP mandaters refused to approve it).
Feichtinger and Mayor Stefan Krapf (ÖVP) rule out that the climate strategy will eventually disappear in a drawer. In the future, climate protection will be a cross-cutting matter, and all committees are called upon to implement the 16 specific projects. “We now have a guide that describes concrete, effective and feasible measures on site,” says Feichtinger.
The first measures are already being anchored in the budget for the coming year. Some projects, such as energy saving measures in the town hall, can be implemented relatively quickly. Projects like geothermal energy, on the other hand, are projects of the century.
Gmunden is one of the first communities in the country to have a climate strategy. “This is a real pioneering achievement,” praises Norbert Rainer, Managing Director of Climate Alliance Austria. “We can only hope that many municipalities will follow this example.”
Mayor Krapf assumes that not every measure will meet with undivided approval. “But we politicians will sometimes have to leave our comfort zone if we are serious about climate protection,” he says.
Source: Nachrichten
