The raft slide at the Kastenmühl weir in Wolfratshausen has not been used since 1999.
According to the cultural advisor Alfred Fraas (CSU), that should change.
However, according to experts, it would be a very costly undertaking.
In 1999 the last wooden vehicle to date passed the raft slide in the Loisach.
The culture officer of the Wolfratshausen city council wants to change that.
The rafting companies have already given up, now the feasibility study of a planning office is on the table.
Wolfratshausen
- The raft slide on the Kastenmühl weir is a kind of industrial monument.
It has not been used since 1999.
The cultural advisor for the city council, Alfred Fraas (CSU), wants to change that, as reported.
Fraas wants to make rafting "tangible" in the heart of the international rafting town.
For him, this includes raft trips across the Loisach through the old town - but for this purpose the slide at the box mill weir would have to be made mobile.
An expensive undertaking, as mayor Klaus Heilinglechner (BVW) announced at the latest meeting of the building committee.
Rafters are not interested in navigating the Loisach
Fraas' move is not without controversy.
16 councils voted in the summer of 2018 for a feasibility study, eight voted against.
The critics doubt the benefit-cost calculation.
“There is a lot of money flowing in without us knowing whether there is a raft operation,” said Gerlinde Berchtold (SPD) at the time.
To date, the two Wolfratshausen raft companies have refused to navigate the Loisach between the new industrial area and the raft land in Weidach.
Fraas didn’t let that scare her.
"An experienced raftsman will drive the rafts," he announced - without being specific.
According to the mayor, costs are "only roughly estimated"
The feasibility study cost a good 22,000 euros.
The result: According to an initial estimate, the “revitalization” of the raft slide would cost around 112,000 euros.
According to the head of the town hall, the price does not include “the costs for any accompanying or compensation expenses arising from nature conservation claims and any expenses for compensating for loss of generation” of the power plant in Weidach.
Not to be forgotten: the municipality would have to spend around 12,000 euros per year on maintaining the raft slide.
The inspection of the commissioning of the raft slide was carried out by the engineering office "m4" in Munich.
"The report before us essentially examines the technical boundary conditions for reactivating raft operations directly at the Kastenmühl weir," said the mayor.
The project was assessed from a hydraulic engineering point of view - and the costs were "roughly estimated".
Ecological aspects were not taken into account in the investigation, and according to Heilinglechner, nature conservation aspects were "initially excluded".
These would have to be “examined and assessed separately” in an in-depth examination by specialist companies.
The town hall chief attached importance to the statement: "Please note that the result of the investigation does not include an assessment of the approval capability for the necessary water law procedure."
"Extensive dredging work" would be necessary
According to the experts at “m4”, the slide would meet the hydraulic requirements.
Entrance, inclination, formation in longitudinal section et cetera "are well suited for a passage with rafts".
But: Due to the so-called bottom position in the underwater and the associated blockade of the exit, it is not possible to pass the slide.
How can the functionality be restored?
"Through extensive dredging work" is the answer from the Munich engineers.
Among other things, the gravel bank on the eastern bank of the Loisach would have to be largely removed.
In this case, “the underwater end of the raft slide would have to be checked and, with a high degree of probability, also renovated,” the experts conclude.
However, “from a hydraulic engineering point of view, another silting-up in this area is inevitable”.
The engineers come to the conclusion: taking into account the gravel banks and nature conservation boundary conditions, that is, the influence of repeated dredging work and the damming of the Loisach, "reactivating the raft slide without extensive planning and construction measures cannot be recommended as a sustainable solution".
As a “comprehensive construction measure” for “m4” comes into question: the conversion of the box mill weir or the repositioning of the raft slide.
The city councils took note of the information.
There was no debate about how to proceed.
(cce)
Also read: District Office is surprised - City Councilor Fraas did not apply for raft trips on the Loisach.
