The model region of Güssing – an example of the Austrian grassroots strategy for
energy independency
By Hans Kordik, Counselor for Agriculture and Environment, Austrian Embassy
The call for energy independence has been on the political agenda across the globe for many
decades. While most countries share a growing energy demand, their reasons for looking to
reduce energy dependency as well as their chosen strategies vary significantly.
In the U.S., the desire for energy independence
had already emerged during the oil embargo of the early 70’s. Most of the State of the Union
addresses since have elaborated on this objective. Just in the last Congress, the advocates of
climate legislation defended their proposals not so much as mitigating emissions, but rather as
finding a solution to the challenge of energy dependency. Even though all sides talk of energy
independence as a worthy goal, since the early 70’s, the share of imported oil has nearly
doubled in the United States.
Just like the U.S., Austria depends on energy imports in the form of fossil energy, primarily
oil and natural gas. But Austria has been working hard to reduce its dependency. Nowhere is
this effort, and its benefits, more evident than in the region of Güssing,
Today, Austria is one of only four European countries that derive more than 30% of their total
energy consumption from renewable energy sources excluding nuclear energy which is not
considered a renewable energy source. In a 1978 referendum, the Austrian people rejected the
construction of nuclear plants in our country, and a few weeks later the parliament
unanimously passed a law prohibiting the use of nuclear power for the production of
electricity. Instead, measures to promote energy efficiency have been at the top of the agenda
for decades. Austria enjoys the world’s highest per-capita share of so called “Passive Houses”
– low-energy homes and buildings that require less than 10% of the energy needed for the
average U.S. home.
In December 2008, under the initiative of Niki Berlakovich, the Federal Minister of
Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management, Austria announced its goal of
becoming energy independent by 2050. The “Land of Mountains,” as it is called in the
national anthem, has realized that skyscrapers are not built from the sky down, but from the
bottom-up. Therefore Austria is pursuing energy independence on a regional level.
The most impressive example of energy independence on a regional level in Austria is the
region of Güssing, a municipality of around 27,000 inhabitants close to the Hungarian border.
During the Cold War it was located alongside the Iron Curtain for 50 years. In 1988, Güssing
was one of the poorest regions of Austria. More than 70% of its workforce commuted to other
regions. Entirely dependent on fossil energy for electricity, heating, and transportation,
Güssing’s annual energy expenditure hovered around $9 million.
It was in 1990 that the Mayor of Güssing, Peter Vadasz, recognized the potential of changing
Güssing’s energy consumption for improving its devastating economic conditions. He
focused on improving the energy efficiency of the region, and using existing resources such
as woody-biomass and municipal solid waste that contains organic combustible material, to
transform his municipality to the first and biggest energy model for energy independence in
the world.
Within eleven years, Güssing became self-sufficient with regards to electricity, heating, and
transportation. In addition, more than 60 new companies and over 1,500 new “Green Jobs”
were created and the share of commuters to other regions fell to 40%. Since Güssing
generates more “green” energy than the region’s needs, the value added to the region is over
$28 million per year. Finally, greenhouse gas emissions were reduced by over 80%.
Numerous other regions in Austria have followed Güssing’s example in the last ten years,
energy independent regions are growing like mushrooms in Austria, demonstrating that this
grassroots strategy has been the key to success. From Tyrol to Lower Austria, and from
Salzburg to Styria, more than 15 regions are now energy independent with regard to
electricity, heating and/or transportation. In addition, 66 regions of Austria are taking action
to become energy independent in the future, which means that 1.7 million inhabitants (21% of
Austria’s population) will be able to consider themselves energy independent. Güssing has
not only been a model for other regions in Austria, but is gaining popularity around the globe
as a prime example of energy independence.