The Greens made it a bike trip short when it came to soil protection

The government team of greens that traveled to the Bregenz Festival – Vice Chancellor Werner Kogler, Minister of Justice Alma Zadic and Minister of Health Johannes Rauch – got a photo of the European protected area “Oer Rid” in Lustenau by bike on Thursday. On the one hand, they were immediately informed of the projects in the protected area, and on the other hand, Kugler took up the topic of soil protection – the core theme of the summer greens campaign.

In hot summer weather, the members of the group – ministers accompanied by about 30 Vorarlberg party members and officials – traveled on an environmentally friendly train from Bregenz. From Lustenau train station we continued by bike to the nearby conservation area. Vorarlberg County Mobility Adviser Daniel Zadra, who hails from Lustenau, provided the information as a kind host and described the protected area as the state’s “Central Park”. The European protected area has many special features, including the fact that it has been owned by the Swiss municipality of Au since 1593. It features, for example, large continuous meadows and is now home to the largest breeding population of grouse in the entire Lake Constance region.

On the one hand, Kugler praises Vorarlberg for its public transportation (“S-Bahn runs there more often than U-Bahn in some larger cities”), but land use is a problem in all federal states. Areas equivalent to 16 football fields in Austria are “used” every day. However, since the federal states are responsible in this regard, attempts are now being made to achieve binding target agreements, the Vice-Chancellor said.