Trees fall for road construction: protest in Lichtenwörth escalated

Trees fall for road construction: protest in Lichtenwörth escalated

In the municipal area of Lichtenwörth, Wiener Neustadt district, there was a protest against clearing work this morning, which takes place as part of the controversial project of the east bypass. Between five and ten demonstrators had gathered on the site of the planned route to protest against the felling of nine older trees. The city of Wiener Neustadt announced that the other, felled plants are predominantly shrubs and dead wood.

The police asked the gathered to leave the site until around 8:50 a.m. Since the meeting was not registered, it was cleared. In the course of these measures, a demonstrator who had tied up in a tree top was brought from the tree shortly before noon and temporarily arrested by the officials. After securing the area, the clearing work on the last trees began.

criticism of environmental organizations

The evacuation met with sharp criticism on the part of the environmental organization Greenpeace, which speaks of a "disaster for nature and agriculture". The NGO Attac also condemns the policy evacuation and explains solidarity with the protesters. In response to the allegations, the city of Wiener Neustadt emphasizes that an ecological viewing supervision for the construction work has been set up and that reforestation measures are planned in November, which should be three times as large as the felled areas. These afforestation should be carried out with local Auwald trees.

Another positive aspect of the project, according to the city administration, is the creation of a 4.6 hectare habitat for the skylark, a protected bird species. This area is already owned by the state of Lower Austria and is intended to contribute to the preservation of biodiversity.

The construction start for the eastern bypass began at the end of September. The project, which is to create a connection from the roundabout on the B60 to the S4 Wiener Neustadt Ost motorway exit, is expected to cost 40 million euros. The traffic release is planned for 2027. Despite the positive decisions in all instances, the project was repeatedly controversial. There was criticism, among other things, of the "Reason instead of eastern", Global 2000 and the Neos party. A protest tree building built by opponents had only been cleared in August. Further information on this topic can be found here