Contaminated Gravel

Asbestos: Tourist Destinations Now in the Spotlight

Schlaining and Geschriebenstein are now also on the list of tourist destinations where Greenpeace claims to have detected asbestos.(Bild: Greenpeace)

Greenpeace claims to have discovered contaminated gravel at seven tourist destinations in Burgenland. The state disputes this and considers the investigations inconclusive.

The list of asbestos sites reported by Greenpeace is growing. After quarries and playgrounds, the focus this time is on tourist attractions. According to the environmental organization, the sites affected include Friedensburg Schlaining, Lockenhaus Castle, the Geschriebenstein observation deck, as well as hiking trails and parking lots. Greenpeace bases its claims on laboratory analyses as well as visual and mechanical inspections, which reportedly revealed asbestos content of up to 50 percent.

The situation at Friedensburg Castle is viewed as particularly critical. According to Greenpeace, those responsible were informed as early as the end of June, yet no protective measures for employees and visitors have been put in place there to date.

Remediation is demanded
The situation is different in Lockenhaus: There, barriers, the rerouting of heavy traffic, and the wetting of the areas have been promised. A recreational facility in southern Burgenland has already begun remediation. Greenpeace is therefore calling for the rapid remediation of the affected areas, aid from the disaster relief fund, and, once again, the permanent closure of the cordoned-off quarries.

An asbestos mass fraction of more than 0.1 percent is considered carcinogenic.(Bild: MITJA KOBAL)

In addition, the NGO accuses the state and the task force of failing to systematically investigate potential additional sites. Officials there reject the allegations. “No health risk can be inferred from the investigations conducted by Greenpeace,” they stated in response to an inquiry from the “Krone.”

All material must be examined
Picking out individual stones, as Greenpeace does, does not yield scientifically sound or meaningful results. Only analyses of the entire rock material are meaningful. The task force also points to the applicable EU regulations. Material is classified as carcinogenic if it has an asbestos mass fraction of more than 0.1 percent (for 1,000 kilograms of rock material, that would be one kilogram of pure asbestos, note).

Furthermore, the state is not the legislative authority in this matter. Greenpeace must therefore direct calls for stricter regulations to the federal government and the EU. As a general rule, the respective landowners are responsible for gravel on paths, roads, or parking lots. They can have the material tested in accordance with standards. Such sampling is carried out regularly in Burgenland.