Oberstdorf (dpa / lby) – After possibly inadmissible construction work on a torrent in a nature reserve in the Allgäu Alps, Environment Minister Thorsten Faithr is pushing for a rehabilitation concept. Whether the damage could really be repaired, “you have to evaluate that professionally now,” said the head of department (free voters) on Wednesday in Rappenalptal near Oberstdorf. “The Rappenalpbach and the valley are of course a jewel for us.”
According to the minister, the affected area resembles a crater landscape – not much seems to be left of the once branched stream with its meandering course. “In my view, it is now (…) to work out who is ultimately responsible for these changes in this wonderful natural area.”
The Greens in the state parliament also called for the events to be clarified on Wednesday. “It will take years for nature to recover from this massive environmental destruction – if that succeeds at all.”
According to the Federal Nature Conservation Agency in Bavaria (BN), a “torrent as a dynamic habitat along a flow path of around one and a half kilometers was destroyed” by construction measures. The BN noticed the changes and made them public. In the meantime, several authorities are checking what happened at the Rappenalpbach.
It is unknown who commissioned the construction work. Environmentalists, authorities and criminal investigators are dealing with the matter. According to the ministry, there are fines of up to 50,000 euros for such interventions in protected areas.
The Rappenalptal is located in the southernmost tip of Germany, just a few kilometers from Austria, bordering on the more well-known Stillachtal.
