SPÖ demands faster restoration and 100 million euros for Lower Austria

Austria’s Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) in Lower Austria has called for a 100 million euro annual restoration initiative, saying flood protection and ecological restoration projects are progressing too slowly. The party also said municipalities need more funding, according to ORF.

SPÖ environmental spokesperson Kerstin Suchan-Mayr and state party leader Sven Hergovich said the initiative should accelerate projects in response to climate change. Half of the proposed funding would come from reallocating the state’s existing subsidies, including by eliminating “duplicate and triple funding”, Hergovich said. The other half would come from the proceeds of the Generation Fund.

Hergovich said around 500 restoration projects had already been launched in Lower Austria in recent years. However, he cited figures from the environmental organisation WWF showing that around 305 kilometres of rivers and streams still have an urgent need for restoration.

Suchan-Mayr, who is also mayor of St. Valentin in the Amstetten district, said municipalities would play an important role in meeting European Union requirements. She pointed to projects in St. Valentin on the Erlabach and on the Pielach as evidence of municipalities’ willingness to act. However, she said the state’s 2027-28 budget contained no additional funds for future projects.

Hergovich said the SPÖ would submit a motion at the next sitting of the state parliament and hold talks with all parties about the proposed initiative. He also appealed to the Freedom Party (FPÖ) and its state leader, Udo Landbauer, accusing him of denying climate change and putting the region at risk from drought and flooding.

Lower Austria announced in early July that it would not implement the EU’s restoration regulation, citing a lack of budgetary room. The decision was criticised by WWF and the Greens. EU member states have until September 1 to submit their national restoration plans to the European Commission.

ÖVP state parliament member Richard Hogl rejected the SPÖ’s initiative, saying it would not help farmers facing the current situation. He called instead for drought assistance for agriculture and urged the SPÖ to pressure its federal colleagues to provide support. Hogl also said the EU should cover the costs of the restoration regulation, while Lower Austria would continue its existing approach to restoration and flood protection.