Practised sustainability in the Montafon

MONTAFON

The Montafon is more than just a valley. The Montafon is tourist destination and biosphere in one. And as such, the Montafon bears responsibility – for its precious nature and cultural landscape as well as for its residents. Topics such as environmental protection and sustainability are therefore clearly important in the Montafon as well. Where is the valley already making these pioneering changes? What ideas for protecting and consciously managing the environment and its resources have already been implemented? We show you a few examples on the following pages.

A unique offering of mountain experiences draws more and more people to the Montafon from near and far throughout the year. To maintain the balance between an attractive tourism region and conservation, the Montafon is advancing the concept of biosphere management. Rethinking the relationship between guests and locals and shaping it appropriately has for many years been a major concern for the Montafon Tourism Office. “Tourism destinations are biospheres, biospheres that need the involvement of all companies, workers, the local population and guests. We’re committed to that,” says Manuel Bitschnau, Managing Director of the Montafon Tourism Office. To achieve this, all areas of interest will be networked and important tourism decisions taken jointly. The focus here is particularly on protecting the forests, game and cultural landscape as well as maintaining freely accessible areas for leisure activities.

By combining forces, it has been possible to refocus on the production of real, regional products from the Montafon and at the same to boost awareness of them among guests and locals alike. The “bewusstmontafon” (Consciously Montafon) association has set itself the objective of promoting the cooperation of the agricultural, dining and retail sectors. Several successes have already been achieved through the initiative of its committed members – from the renaissance of the Sura Kees to the conservation of the Montafon Steinschaf (stone sheep). The logo guarantees the use of regional ingredients. This at the same time ensures that a bit of Montafon is to be found in each certified product.

There are 12 alpine dairy farms in the Montafon that produce the famous Sura Kees! A nice hike to one of the 12 Montafon alpine dairy farms is always worthwhile. You also have the possibility to drop in and enjoy a hearty snack.

To show how exiting from fossil energy can work in a rural area, the Silbertal has embarked on “Mission Zero Silbertal”. The initiative focuses on the region’s biggest consumers of oil. A raft of measures is being put in place to support public transport and electromobility. Cycle paths are also being extended. Guests are encouraged to arrive on public transport and once here also to enjoy an extensive range of sustainable transport options. These include, for example, e-bike rental, e-car sharing offers for guests and an e-shuttle bus from Schruns train station to their accommodation. Another goal of Mission Zero Silbertal is to move as many households as possible from environmentally harmful oil heating systems to renewable alternatives.

At the Kristbergbahn and a number of other businesses, this switch has already been made: since 2020, the cableway, the existing lifts and the snowmaking system have been powered with green electricity. What’s more: An electric skidoo has been purchased to transport luggage.

If there’s one thing you really don’t have to worry about on the Golm Adventure Mountain, it’s the environment. That’s because on the Golm Adventure Mountain, you’ll make your turns in Austria’s first climate-neutral ski area. How does that work? For many years, targeted measures for a sustainable mountain environment have been put in place here. These include the Hüttenkopfbahn, which went into operation in winter season 2012/13 and was the first cableway in the world to run on the power of the sun. In fact, every third guest is conveyed in an environmentally friendly way using solar energy, thanks to the installed photovoltaic modules. Of course, the protection of resources using snow management systems was also the focus of attention in the case of snowmaking. For example, measuring the exact depth of snow ensures that snow is only artificially produced where it is actually needed. In addition, a special drainage system was installed on the slopes in the Golm adventure mountain ski area which returns meltwater to the Lünersee power plant to generate green electricity. And all this has already paid off: in 2018, the Golm Adventure Mountain together with Golm Silvretta Lünersee Tourismus was named Austria’s first climate-neutral tourism area.

Did you know that the Green Ticket gives you a day ticket including arrival by bus and train from across Vorarlberg and from the border train stations in Tyrol, Germany and Switzerland?

The idea behind the Montafon CleanUP Days is quickly explained: volunteers set off in small groups to collect rubbish on the mountain peaks, hiking trails and along river banks. In 2021, it was time: during the Montafon CleanUP Days, almost 350 volunteers arranged into self-organised groups freed nature in the Montafon of discarded rubbish. Both locals and guests got stuck in. The event was the initiative of “Patron Plasticfree Peaks” and the team behind cabinski Montafon in collaboration with the Montafon Tourism Office and the four Montafon cableway companies. The collected rubbish was then disposed of at one of the eight waste collection points. And, of course, the joint success was celebrated at a convivial Meet & Greet on the Saturday evening.

The environmentally friendly implementation of events is growing in importance as a topic not only for organisers, but also for visitors. The quality of the food and drinks on offer as well as the cleanliness and hygiene at the event venue also play an ever important role. As an event-intensive region, the Montafon applies a concept elaborated by different interest groups that sends out a strong signal in the direction of sustainability at events of every kind. The primary objective is to establish a sustainable and climate-friendly event structure that should be implemented on the basis of concrete guidelines and professional advice. The avoidance or reduction of waste, the use of regional products, climate friendly travel to and from the Montafon as well as the protection of resources in the planning of events are just a few examples that can be mentioned as concrete implementation points.

The Montafon CleanUP Days 2022 will take place from Friday 9 to Sunday 11 September! Being there is definitely worth it!