Salzburg launches extensive repairs on city mountains

Salzburg is carrying out extensive repair work on its city mountains, ORF reports. The projects include replacing rockfall protection on Kapuzinerberg mountain and restoring walls on Festungsberg mountain, including parts of the fortress.

In the northern face of Kapuzinerberg, excavator operators, workers and technicians from the Torrent and Avalanche Control service are working on steep terrain. A second row of rockfall protection nets has become old and damaged, so its supports and grids are being replaced.

A total of 350 metres of rockfall protection netting will be replaced this year. Workers are drilling and grouting anchors into the rock, while helicopters transport and secure packages of netting. The protective forest is also being strengthened, with the existing woodland being developed into a more stable mixed forest that can better withstand storms.

On the other side of the city, workers are securing loose sections of wall and repairing joints at the historic Bürgermeisterloch structure on Festungsberg, which dates from the Thirty Years’ War. Wall blocks must be numbered before they are removed so they can later be put back in the exact order. Plants and roots are also being removed from the masonry.

The city is investing about 1.3 million euros in the work, which is expected to continue for another year. Repairs are also continuing higher up at the fortress, where plaster has begun to crumble after about 35 years. The facade is being restored with traditional plaster made from lime and sand, using historical materials in coordination with heritage protection authorities.

Work will continue until the first frost, after which the construction sites will close for the winter. The fortress will mark its 950th anniversary next year.