By Thomas HochwarterA ten-year-old Russian girl is in intensive care as she collapsed minutes after a skiing accident.Officials in Sölden in Tyrols Imst district said the girl lost control of her skis on the childrens “Mini-Giggijoch” slope. She crashed into a pile of snow and probably landed on the back of her head, according to […]
VCÖ deplores boom in SUV sales
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By Lisa ChapmanThe Austrian Traffic Club (VCÖ) has criticised this year’s boom in registrations of gas-guzzling sport utility vehicles (SUVs).VCÖ said today (Weds) the number of registrations of SUVs had increased year on year by 22.5 per cent in 2009. There was an increase of only 8.0 per cent for all cars.It said the biggest […]
By David RogersThe Vienna insurance firm Allianz has called for more environmentally-friendly car repair.Firm board member Johann Oswald said today (Thurs) that a study by the Karlsruhe Institute for Technology in Germany had shown that smaller repairs instead of the installation of new spare parts resulted in significantly lower emissions of greenhouse gases.Oswald said such […]
Recession slashes power consumption
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By William GreenPower consumption plunged this year amid an industry downturn because of the recession, the Association of Austrian Electricity Enterprises (VEÖ) said today (Tues).VEÖ said the fall reached its lowest point in April, when consumption was down by 10.3 per cent year on year.Declines of 6.1 per cent and 7.1 per cent occurred year […]
By David RogersAustrian authorities have launched a new scrappage scheme for old refrigerators and freezers.The Household Environmental Forum (UFH) in cooperation with the environment ministry announced today that Austrians would get 100 Euros for the exchange of the old appliances for energy-saving “A++” devices under the scheme, which has been backdated to 1 September.The budget […]
By Lisa ChapmanPoliticians have hit out after Vienna’s Ringstraße was shut down yesterday (Tues) to mark an EU-wide car free day.They blasted the move organised by the Greens and environmental non-governmental organizations (NGOs) which saw the Ring between Operngasse and Bellariastraße shut and covered with artificial grass for people to picnic on during […]
By William GreenMore than 200,000 Vienna residents have signed a petition against the controversial expansion of a nuclear power plant in Slovakia, a city councillor has claimed.Social Democratic (SPÖ) environmental councillor Ulli Sima, who had started postcard and online campaigns against its expansion, said today (Thurs) that 204,162 people had signed the petition.She said: “We […]
By Thomas HochwarterWinters with temperatures as low as minus 50 degrees centigrade. Not a soul within 20 kilometres. And the occasional brown bear ogling through the kitchen window.A situation which might be regarded as a perfect nightmare or the perfect plot for an adventure movie by most. But for Austrian Manuela Zeitlhofer, it […]
By Lisa ChapmanThe WWF has warned against the construction of more hydroelectric plants in Austria as it says the countrys rivers are in a “dramatic” state.Christoph Walder, the head of the international environmental groups campaign “Rivers Full of Life” said today (Tues): “As long as there is no good analysis of Austrias water-power potential, it […]
By Lisa ChapmanGreenpeace Austria has said it is in talks with supermarket chains over the placement of CO2 seals on food products.The environmental group announced today (Thurs) it was talking to retail bosses about the seals – small labels stating how much CO2 was consumed in production of a good which it claimed consumers […]