Model company

Bricks: Minister impressed by “Green Bricks”

Totschnig (2nd from left) was presented with an eco-brick by Marcher (2nd from right) during his visit to the company.(Bild: Imre Antal)

A guest at a model company: his first official visit took Norbert Totschnig, the new super climate minister, to brick kilns in the wide open countryside.

Brick production is energy-intensive," admitted Norbert Totschnig during a visit to a company in Hennersdorf in the district of Mödling. But the ÖVP minister (now responsible for agriculture and forestry, climate and environmental protection, regions and water management) was able to see for himself that the traditional Wienerberger company is constantly working on reducing emissions. The manufacturers have even achieved a sensational feat! Thanks to the "Green Bricks" project, the world's first "bricks" fired with 100 percent renewable electricity can now be produced. This is accompanied by a drastic reduction in energy consumption.

Ambitious sustainability program
Managing Director Johann Marcher emphasizes that this one step has long been methodical: Sustainability is a corporate strategy! "We have been thinking and acting in this direction for many years - on the one hand with our natural building material, on the other with an ambitious sustainability program that massively reduces CO₂ emissions, increases biodiversity and ensures the reusability of our products," assures the environmental pioneer in the vast land of bricks.