Political divisions delay Austria’s new air protection law

Political disagreements are threatening to delay Austria’s new air protection law, which Tirol needs as a possible replacement for its lorry traffic bans, ORF reported on Thursday. The stricter European Union limits must be incorporated into Austrian law this year and apply by 2030 at the latest, but a parliamentary vote by the end of 2026 is now considered uncertain.

The three-party federal coalition of the Austrian People’s Party, the Social Democratic Party and NEOS has been discussing a revised Immissionsschutzgesetz Luft, or IG-L, for two months. The current law provides the legal basis for Tirol’s lorry bans, which are being challenged in proceedings before the European Court of Justice.

The bans could be overturned in Italy’s transit case against Austria. European Court of Justice Advocate General Manuel Campos Sanchez-Bordona said on July 16 that the measures were unlawful. His opinion is not binding, although the court usually follows such recommendations.

The new law would give Tirol another possible legal basis for lorry restrictions if the court rejects the existing measures. The European Parliament adopted new, lower air-quality limits in 2024, requiring EU countries to implement them in national law within two years, meaning in 2026.

Environment Minister Norbert Totschnig of the People’s Party submitted a draft prepared by his officials for coordination in July. Several ministries are involved in the negotiations, but the coalition parties have not yet agreed on the text. No formal consultation process has begun, although such a procedure normally takes six to eight weeks.

Opposition has also come from the People’s Party’s business wing. Franz Hörl, a Tirol lawmaker who sits on Parliament’s environment committee, said he had not even seen the draft. He told ORF Tirol that he would first need to know how the new law would affect Tirol’s industrial base and residential heating before supporting it.

Totschnig’s office said the Social Democrats and NEOS had not yet commented on the draft. NEOS transport and European affairs spokesman Dominik Oberhofer, a Tirol lawmaker, rejected that claim, saying his party had responded and supported air protection but still wanted to negotiate parts of the proposal. He accused Totschnig of delaying the process.

Under the proposed law, monitoring stations could also be installed on private property, potentially through expropriation. Oberhofer called that a serious intervention in property rights. Totschnig’s office said the government still aimed to pass the new IG-L in the National Council in December.