Citizens' decision – the fear of the earthquake – Fürstenfeldbruck

More than 73% of voters in Puchheim vote against the geothermal project. The citizens' initiative speaks of "sensational success". The mayor admits: "We could not erase worries."

By a large majority, voters in Puchheim Sunday rejected the geothermal project. More than 73% voted in favor of the random question with no. Representatives of the citizen's initiative "Stop Geothermie" spoke of a sensational result that exceeded their expectations. "I'm really happy," said Peukert. "We could not erase the concerns," said Mayor Norbert Seidl (SPD).

Seidl had already predicted a 70% victory for opponents shortly after polls closed. According to the provisional final result, the request for geothermal energy of the council, carried by the CSU, the Greens, the SPD and the UBP, only collected 27.82% of the vote, the referendum 75.26%, a three-quarters majority. In the question, 26.65% were in favor of the geothermal project and 73.35% against. With approximately 7,000 votes, the turnout was over 44%, so the quorum is reached. The bastion of geothermal opponents was expected due to the proximity of the drilling site in the south of the city, where more than 80% opposed the promotion of hot water from the depth. But in other constituencies as well, the party's grand coalition had no chance, where the numbers revolved around the outcome predicted by the mayor. His badistant Rainer Zöller (CSU), however, fell from the clouds. He had expected a brief conclusion: "I am disappointed."

For Seidl the project is dead, the drill claim expires at the end of June 2019. If another district municipality with geothermal energy succeeded, it could in a few years introduce a second attempt. Manfred Sengl (Greens), the chairman of the Environmental Advisory Council, stressed that for him the referendum is longer than the prescribed year, but politically morally at least five years. Sengl accused opponents of having worked with fear of earthquakes and conducted a "partially aggressive campaign". Supporters of the Council have failed to "convey trust".

Peukert stated that the citizen's initiative had contributed to rationality through "objective and fair education". For months they would have worked with factual arguments and talked to anyone who wanted to, said Michael Pausch. He criticized the big news event in the city, where only project supporters sat on the podium and citizens were only allowed to submit questions in writing. Both pointed out that the initiative was voluntary and donated all the expenses, while the city even hired a professional communications expert for his campaign. The BI spokesperson reacted positively to the mayor's request to actively participate in the energy transition in the future. Peukert is in favor of a wood chip plant, which he has already proposed, Pausch called for the rehabilitation of the district heating network and Planie homes.