Six EIA Procedures

Progress is Slowly Being Made on Wind Power Expansion

Six wind turbines are already operating in the Kobernaußerwald, and nine more are planned.(Bild: Pressefoto Scharinger/Daniel Scharinger)

Planned exclusion zones here, political headwinds there—when it comes to expanding wind power, you need patience in Upper Austria. Nevertheless, progress is slowly being made: Important steps have recently been taken in the EIA procedures for six planned wind farms. Another project is in the pipeline. 

In recent years, the planned wind farms in Sandl, Vorderweißenbach, and the Kobernaußerwald have attracted particular media attention.

Largest Planned Wind Farm in Sandl
As previously reported, 22 wind turbines were originally planned in Sandl to generate electricity for 125,000 households. Due to a lynx habitat in the immediate vicinity, the project was scaled back to 19 turbines. As Provincial Environment Minister Stefan Kaineder (Greens) announced on Monday, the public review of the documents in the ongoing EIA process has been completed. An oral hearing could take place before the end of this year.

Controversial: The planned wind farm is located in an area defined by the state—though not yet binding—as an exclusion zone. According to Elisabeth Mayr, head of the EIA and Economic Law Group for the State of Upper Austria, 119 comments and objections regarding the project have been received and must now be reviewed. The EIA process in Königswiesen, where ten turbines are planned, is at a similarly advanced stage as in Sandl.

Higher-level decision trumps lower-level one
In Vorderweißenbach, too, the environmental impact assessment for the Sternwald wind farm is underway. The project—which calls for nine turbines—recently caused a stir within the ÖVP government: After Markus Achleitner, the state councilor for regional planning, sought to revoke the area’s status as an “acceleration zone,” Governor Thomas Stelzer overruled his party colleague and confirmed the classification as an acceleration zone.

In the Kobernaußerwald, a total of 18 wind turbines were originally planned across five municipalities. However, the project had to be scaled back by half, and the height of two wind turbines had to be reduced because the area is home to low-altitude flight zones used by the Austrian Armed Forces. Like this area, the Steiglberg Wind Farm (nine turbines) is also located in an acceleration zone.

Another Project in the Starting Blocks
A new addition is the Schiffberg Wind Farm (three turbines) in Rainbach im Mühlkreis, for which an EIA application was submitted on July 6. The EIA authority expects to receive an application soon for another project in Windhaag near Freistadt (three turbines), after the preliminary assessment determined that an EIA is necessary.

Kaineder is satisfied with the progress. Addressing the black-blue coalition, he says: “The next step must be to finally abandon the planned no-go zones for wind power. Upper Austria needs wind power, not bans on wind power.”