Walls for flood protection: "It makes Erding ugly"

Created: 07/01/2022, 08:00

By: Bernd Heinzinger

The association is headed (from left): Anton Bichlmeier, Georg Bichlmaier, Rainer Hörl, Josef Stimmer and Christian Veicht from the citizens' initiative "Natural Flood Protection Sempt".

4721 signatures collected Demand for a second report © Bernd Heinzinger

The citizens' initiative flood protection Sempt fights against the planned solution with walls along the Sempt.

An association has now been formed.

Altenerding

- The planned wall solution is still an absurdity for the citizens' initiative (BI) "Natural Flood Protection Sempt".

The members fight for a natural and decentralized protection, preferably with three smaller retention basins above Erding.

A club was recently formed.

Treasurer Anton Bichlmeier explains the motives for this: "Our investigations cost a lot of money, so we depend on donations, among other things." As a non-profit association, you can issue a tax-deductible donation receipt.

"We are an open association, anyone can come and join the board."

Rainer Hörl was elected chairman, with Josef Stimmer as his deputy.

Secretary Christian Veicht completes the first leadership of the new BI alongside Bichlmeier.

At an information event in Altenerding, Veicht first reported on the latest developments.

There have been many unsuccessful talks with the city: "Unfortunately, our queries were dismissed as nonsensical." On the part of the state government, Benno Zierer (Freie Wahler), among others, had shown a liking for the solution proposed by the BI: "But there is no great support from there ' Veicht regretted.

A signature campaign was more successful: 4,721 people, 3,668 of them from Erding, took part in the petition, which was then submitted to the state parliament.

So far this has not been dealt with.

In general, the BI is preparing for the planning approval procedure regarding the central solution with 1.40 meter high walls along the Sempt.

Objections to this are more than likely, in the meeting a bleak picture was shown of what the course of the city could look like.

Many trees would have to be felled, Anton Bichlmeier said: "We have to do something about it.

It makes Erding ugly, that’s not possible.”

The three smaller water retention basins proposed by the BI could be built on the road south of the Wörther Weiher, near Niederwörth and near Pretzen.

The members of the BI made it clear in the assembly that they would even have more water assets in total than a single large basin.

There are other options against a flood like the one that devastated parts of the city in 2013.

The power plants along the Sempt would have failed by doing nothing at the time, emphasized Josef Stimmer: "If their locks had been opened properly, worse things could have been prevented."

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Rainer Hörl added that the stream had to be cleared regularly: "There is even a resolution for this from the 1950s." The watercourse in the city park could also have been drained in 2013 to get more storage space.

Professor Peter Kirchhoff, who was present, criticized the evaluation matrix of the Water Management Office.

An expert report first came out that retention basins in the north would hold off a 100-year flood: "The office then asked the experts to check the case that it was raining much more heavily to the right of the Sempt than to the left." 72 hours of rain is absolutely unrealistic, but still brought a new result.

Kirchhoff pleaded for an alternative report, which would be like a second opinion when visiting a doctor.

The citizens' initiative will continue to fight, but also sees the city as having an obligation: "If those responsible tell the water management office that they don't want it that way, then they would act," Anton Bichlmeier is convinced.

"But our mayor says he can't do anything just because he received a letter from the Minister for the Environment with the wall solution."

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