Local chief under pressure

Five years of dispute over the stench of pig farming

There have been complaints about the stench from a pig farm in Buchkirchen since 2019.(Bild: Einöder Horst)

In the municipality of Buchkirchen (Wels-Land district), residents are fighting against the expansion of pig farming and for the mayor, who was elected three years ago, to implement a ruling by the Federal Administrative Court in August 2021. Although he promises a solution, he cannot say what it will look like.

Buchkirchen SP mayor Nikon Baumgartner finds himself in a dilemma. Following a ruling by the Federal Administrative Court, he has to revoke a decision to keep pigs on a farm. "But no one can tell me exactly what will happen to the farm. I have the feeling that the state that issued the decision is passing the buck to us and leaving us out in the cold," says the newly elected head of the village in 2021.

As a local councillor, he has always been aware of the ongoing dispute about animal husbandry and the criticism of the bad smell since 2019, but now he has to make a decision quickly. "The neighbors are threatening me with legal action if I don't revoke the decision. If I do, the owner of the stables may take legal action."

The local council recently spent an hour and a half discussing the issue. Without result. Baumgartner: "We will convene a special municipal council in May, a decision must be made." He is toying with the idea of imposing further conditions on the pig farmer. Air filter systems are being considered.

I can understand the neighbor. She must also be aware that she lives in the countryside and that pigs are kept there.

Nikon Baumgartner, SPÖ-Bürgermeister

Local resident Maria Thallinger, who took the case to the Federal Administrative Court, doesn't want to know anything about this: "The conditions are useless, the stall operators don't comply anyway. They were playing with the wrong cards from the start." She is demanding that the mayor revoke the decision and give her and her family back their quality of life: "The Federal Administrative Court has ultimately clearly stated that the stench is a health hazard."