Scandal around landfill: St. Pölten threatens garbage chaos after sale!

Scandal around landfill: St. Pölten threatens garbage chaos after sale!

Am Ziegelofen, 3100 St. Pölten, Österreich - The closure of the landfill "Am Ziegel oven" in St. Pölten has triggered a wave of reactions. The political argument is pussy, while the Greens express significant criticism of the responsible authorities. City Councilor Christina Engel-Unterberger emphasizes that it was the pressure from Greenpeace who moved the authorities to act. "Various problems have been pointed out for years," she says. The ÖVP, on the other hand, blames the SPÖ city government for the grievances and describes the sale of the landfill as a "step into the scandal". The city VP already called for extensive exams in the spring after information on illegal deposits became known, as Vice Mayor Matthias Adl explains. "The promised hall is still not," said Adl.

separation from the landfill for economic reasons

"A landfill is not part of our core business," explains Mayor Matthias Stadler and justifies the city's step to separate itself from the landfill and the mechanical-biological waste treatment plant. The financial expenditure of 24.2 million euros is too high for upgrading the system, and the storage of residual and bulky waste is no longer legally possible. Entrepreneur Johann Zöchling from Hainfeld quickly found himself as a new operator and will take over the landfill for 4.7 million euros. Zöchling is a well -known size in the industry with over 400 employees and comes with experiences from 30 years in waste management.

Erwin Ruthner, the representative of the city responsible for waste management, made it clear that the garbage disposal remains under the control of the magistrate and the Zöchling employees are taken over. Nevertheless, there are concerns about rising truck traffic in the city, since Zöchling needs between 60,000 and 80,000 tons of waste every year to profitably operate the landfill. The waste comes from Lower Austria, Styria and Upper Austria. The opposition is also concerned about the lack of information: "We have not consulted anyone and only experienced from the sale from the media," says ÖVP Vice Mayor Matthias Adl. There are similar concerns about the Greens: "We lack the concept for heavy traffic, which will probably now increase," says Markus Hippmann.

These developments have moved the topic of waste management in St. Pölten in the spotlight, and the political discussion about responsibilities is still passionate, as both the Nön as well as the Kurier Report.