Oberstdorf (dpa / lby) - After the unauthorized dredging work on the protected Rappenalpbach in the Allgäu near Oberdorf, the district office defends itself against allegations of having watched environmental destruction. The district authority in Sonthofen, on the other hand, accused the alpine cooperative, which carried out the construction work, of not having kept to agreements.
According to previous investigations, the cooperative had massively redesigned the torrent in the nature reserve by dredging over a length of 1.6 kilometers. Environmental groups are talking about the destruction of nature, and the police are investigating someone responsible.
On Thursday, the state parliament SPD demanded clarification from Environment Minister Thorsten Faithr (free voters) as to what role the district authority had played in the construction work and why "the environmental destruction in the Rappenalp Valley was watched for so long". The Greens in the state parliament also criticized the fact that so far "at most only half the truth is on the table".
After the suspected illegal straightening of the torrent became known, the district office declared in November that "only isolated, selective water maintenance measures had been coordinated". The authority only presented further details on Thursday, after which it had been in discussion with the cooperative since the end of August.
The background was therefore a storm that devastated the banks of the Alpenbach in the summer. Short-term measures were then discussed in four places that did not require a permit under water law. The work that took place later was then uncoordinated "massive changes" to the creek. The cooperative continued the work despite an interim ban.
In the meantime, the company had also submitted an urgent application to the administrative court in Augsburg because of the dispute about the waterway expansion. However, the judges agreed with the district office that there was no approval procedure for the dredging work that actually took place. The district authority announced that it would now initiate immediate measures.
