Fracking flares up

“This would destroy our landscape for good!”

"Holes" in the land due to gas leaching from underground, land consumption and more: a region is once again fighting back against fracking.

(Bild: thinkstockphotos.de)

A strong upward trend: this is the trend in the Weinviertel's vacation statistics. Although - or perhaps precisely because - the region is known for its rolling hills and species-rich watercourses, the FPÖ's latest push for fracking in the Weinviertel is also being met with disapproval by those who are in favor of decoupling from imports from Russia.

The first impetus for this came from FPÖ state parliament speaker and member of parliament Reinhard Teufel: "Austria must finally use its own gas sources," he said - but without specifically using the word "fracking". In response to a question from the FPÖ in the "Krone" newspaper, there was a clear commitment to this type of extraction - albeit "in relation to the environmentally friendly method of the Montanuniversität Leoben", as they emphasized.

One major concern is contamination of the groundwater, whereby the valuable water in the Weinviertel is already a rare commodity compared to the rest of Austria.

(Bild: ORF)

"Environmentally friendly and fracking - there's no such thing!"
This is where the Greens immediately intervene: For Hollabrunn MP Georg Ecker, this argument prompts him to take a harsher tone: "You can't call fracking environmentally friendly for any process," he says, alluding to the Leoben method (see graphic below): "This only applies a different solution in one step, otherwise I don't see any advantage."

The principle of fracking, on the right the mixture developed by the Montan University for the so-called leaching of the gas.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/stock.adobe.com)

As a member of parliament in the Weinviertel region and also Vice President of the Lower Austrian Chamber of Commerce, Kurt Hackl from Wolkersdorf is also keeping a close eye on the issue. "The danger to our environment bears no relation to the benefits. Especially if it could also be at the expense of us and the health of future generations."

We are already one of the Austrian regions with the most wind turbines and we also see potential for the further expansion of photovoltaics.

Kurt Hackl, Vizepräsident der NÖ Wirtschaftskammer und ÖVP-Abgeordeter

Bild: zVg

Methodology doesn't matter: resistance from the Weinviertel region has many reasons
OMV did not even come to test the technology at the Montan-Uni; they were "downright chased away" by local residents, they say. In addition, after one of the largest gas discoveries in July 2023, there will be enough to produce in the future. Very high water demand in the driest region.

It's a prank to talk about gas in times like these. What's more, this supposedly gentle method is over 10 years old.

Georg Ecker, Grünen-Abgeordneter im Landtag

Bild: Imre Antal

The concerns of the population are not just about chemical contamination: images of rugged landscapes in the USA, created by the huge water pits required for extraction, are too vivid to remember when it comes to fracking.

If Gazprom actually stops deliveries, rising gas prices will affect both our households and the domestic economy.

Reinhard Teufel, FPÖ-Klubobmann im Landtag

Bild: (c)foto-kerschi.at werner-kerschbaummayr

After all, the method used by the Montan-Uni Leoben also requires a lot of water, as Green Party regional leader Helga Krismer emphasizes: "And it is well known that the Weinviertel, especially the Marchfeld, is one of the driest regions in Austria."

Lots of water possible for drilling: Landscape at risk? 
With the high density of wind turbines and photovoltaic areas, additional gas fracking in the Weinviertel would probably result in an explosive energy mix: "That would be the death blow for our landscape," many fear.