Hochrindl hotel dispute triggers call to reform environmental watchdog

A dispute over a planned 300-bed hotel at the Hochrindl ski area has prompted the Carinthian People’s Party to call for reform of the state’s independent environmental ombudsman’s office, ORF reports.

The Carinthian Nature Conservation Advisory Board, acting as the state’s independent environmental ombudsman, has challenged the project before the Federal Administrative Court. The planned start of construction is now uncertain, and investor Thomas Seitlinger has suggested he could withdraw from the project.

The state says the hotel does not require an environmental impact assessment. Seitlinger said the project would be smaller than originally planned, while the ski area needed more visitors. The Nature Conservation Advisory Board said questions remained unresolved.

Albert Kreiner, the state’s business ombudsman and a former state legal official, said companies needed fast procedures that were legally and technically correct, particularly during difficult economic times. He called for all parties involved, including experts and the Nature Conservation Advisory Board, to exercise judgement.

Carinthia’s Economic Affairs Minister Sebastian Schuschnig of the People’s Party said the environmental ombudsman’s office should be reorganised. He said its areas of participation and personnel should be reviewed, including whether representatives with economic expertise should be involved. Schuschnig also said he was concerned that the state could discourage investors.

The Nature Conservation Advisory Board has five honorary members and operates independently. Rudolf Auernig, who represents the board and the environmental ombudsman’s office, said its legal duty was to represent nature and the environment in proceedings. The members had been appointed unanimously by the state government, he said.

Environmental Affairs Minister Marika Lagger-Pöllinger of the Social Democratic Party described the situation as a difficult balancing act between nature conservation and coalition unity. She said the environmental ombudsman had reviewed 46 projects in recent years, taking seven to court and approving 39.

A separate dispute concerns a photovoltaic installation at the Mahle filter plant. Under the zoning designation, a currently undeveloped company-owned plot could immediately be paved as a car park. A nature conservation expert has raised concerns about the proposed solar installation, while the municipality’s official expert said it would be visible from the Petzen mountain. The municipality of St Michael ob Bleiburg must now decide.