Währing relies on green ideas: fruit trees and pledge rings in sight!

Währing relies on green ideas: fruit trees and pledge rings in sight!

On October 1, 2025, the third district council meeting in Wäring took place this year after the summer break in the ballroom of the district at Martinstrasse 100. The main focus of the session was on the establishment of Pfandringen on dung chips and the planting of fruit trees in public spaces. These two topics met with lively interest among the district councils.

The ÖVP and the left faction spoke out for the initiative in Pfandringen, which should specifically aim to facilitate deposit bottles and subsequently also to reduce garbage. ÖVP district councilor Johannes Schreiber pointed out the importance of security for bottle collectors to support his argument. Planned locations for the pawn rings are the carriage market, Aumannplatz and Gersthofer Platz. Nevertheless, the city administration shows skepticism towards these plans and warns of possible garbage accumulation, which could make implementation more difficult. Ultimately, both applications for Pfandringen were forwarded to the environmental committee for further examination.

Public fruit trees for more biodiversity

Another point of the agenda was the proposal of Neos district councilor Manuela-Anna Sumah-Vospernik to plant fruit trees in public space. The aim of this application is to contribute to biodiversity within the district and at the same time enable citizens to have a free fruit harvest. However, critical voices from the ranks of the ÖVP and FPÖ expressed concerns and recommended a more precise formulation of the application. Questions about liability in case of fall fruit and the maintenance effort were raised, which led to a controversial discussion. Ultimately, the majority of the district councils decided to leave the original application to implement the fruit tree project at the magistrate department 42.

This initiative for greening and upgrading public space is in accordance with the project "Value City Green", which is funded by the Federal Environment Agency. The aim of this project is to better map the effects of urban green areas and thus illustrate their value for the city society. The online tool, which is currently being planned, is intended to help deliver arguments for the preservation and expansion of city green and to promote broad citizen participation in order to create strong acceptance among the population. This indicates a trend that city green no longer just as a cost factor, but to be regarded as an indispensable part of the quality of life.

Overall, the meeting in Währing shows that the topic of the environment and the promotion of biodiversity and sustainability are increasingly moving to the agenda of the district representatives. If the proposals are implemented, this could be an important step towards a livable and greener city of Vienna.

For more information on the planned initiatives and the current discussions in Währing, read the detailed reports Mine and ORF Vienna as well as the “value in town” project Federal Environment Agency.