Brave new german wine - High Moselle bridge

The construction of a bridge, 160m long and about 2km wide, across the moselle valley has started. Affected vineyard sites:

Grosslagen:

Schwarzlay
Kurfuerstlay
Muenzlay
Badstube

Einzellagen:

Graacher Abtsberg
Graacher Himmelreich
Graacher Domprobst
Graacher Josephshoefer
Wehlener Sonnenuhr
Zeltinger Rosenberg
Zeltinger Sonnenuhr
Zeltinger Schlossberg
Zeltinger Himmelreich
Zeltinger Deutschherrenberg
Zeltinger Rotlay
Plattener Klosterberg
Erdener Busslay
Loesnicher Burgberg
Uerziger Wuerzgarten
Bernkastel-Kueser Johannisbruennchen





Moselle vally and winegrowing region without bridge B50:


Moselle vally and winegrowing region with bridge B50:


International press about high moselle bridge

More information on protest page

Hugh Johnson about the construction of a 160 meter high and about 2km long bridge across the moselle valley near Wehlen, Uerzig and Zeltingen.

Johnson has already gone head-to-head with the "vineyard minister" of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, who also happens to be the minister for transport, Hendrik Hering. In a letter to Johnson, Hering accused him of elitism and told him to concentrate on reporting on the high-quality wines of the local vintners rather than "changes to the landscape".

Hugh has already made much of the attempts by the relevant minister, Hendrik Hering, to gag him from speaking about the bridge. Last night Stuart Pigott called for Hering, the minister responsible for both wine and, unfortunately, transport in the German state of Rhineland-Pfalz, to either recognise the constitutional right to free speech or resign.

Maybe some of you follow the winegrowing minister`s opinion that this bridge is an important part of infrastructure. Maybe some are following Hendrik`s appeal not to mention this fact anywhere, afraid of disadvantages in wine business.

As a person not involved in wine business, except for the construction of some websites, I give a shit for any worries concerning disadvantages from anybody in the (german) wine industry and wine lobbyism groups.What happens here is a crying shame not only for a winegrowing region, it is a shame for the whole world.

Germany blamed Afghanistan for the destruction of the UNESCO World heritage site of the buddhas of Bamyan, calling it a rude act of uncivilised people.

At least there was a time when Afghanistan pleades for this UNESCO World heritage status. Germany never pleaded world heritage status for the moselle valley - due to the construction of this bridge. Bad propaganda when a country looses a world heritage site.

The Elbe valley near Dresden once had UNESCO world heritage status. This status was lost by the construction of a bridge.

The middle rhine valley (still) has UNESCO world heritage status. This status is in danger - by the plans to build a bridge.


What I can see driving around are new discounters and hangar size halls of grape producers (dont even want to call these folks vintners). On the other hand I see those bloody propaganda printings, showing cloned robots, either driving bikes or hiking through photoshopped vineyards.


I just can`t stand this kind of propaganda no more. It is just to much. Too much concrete shit is hitting my eyes. Views once dominated by villas built of local sandstone are now dominated by discounters the size of medium sized soccer stadiums. Waving flags of merchandising messages in the middle of cultural landscapes.

The landscape that is left is nothing but a joke, compared with the landscape it onces was before the land consolidation programs in cold war times. Brave new vineyards have been erected. Dry stone walls have been destructed, hillsides flattened, lowlands elevated.

What is inside of people responsible for anything like that? Can it be something else than just money and digits? I doubt it. These folks, people like the minister for traffic, agriculture and wine from the federal state of rhineland-palatinate Hendrik Hering are nothing but greedy barbarians.

The qualification for this person to occupy his office is: He is a lawyer.


How ridiculous is this? A person responsible for the best Riesling vineyards on this planet is just giving a shit, not only for this vineyards or the moselle winegrowing region, he is just giving a shit for anything else than his own personal belongings.

"Hey, at least I earn enough money to move somewhere else."

I am ashamed being german. About 75% of the people living in this country just seem to be bondaged dumbasses, afraid of government power and pressure.




{edit}
Pictures with kind permission of www.b50neu.de

[David M. Bueker]

Richard,

The bridge has been brought up before here and on ther wine web sites with links to petitions to stop the project. I know I have signed up and also sent a letter, as have other wine enthusasts from this site and others.

It is truly sad that they would choose to do this. I am reminded of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy where Arthur Dent is quesitoning why his home must be destroyed. "The world needs bypasses" is the only answer he is given. The same answer is given to Earth when the Vogons decide to blow up our planet. "Progress" marches on regardless of cost in dollars or heritage.

Richard,

Thanks for those photos and map. I hadn't realised that the road would run so close to the top of the slopes which contain the Wehlen and Graach vineyards; that certainly makes me understand better the concerns about the impact upon drainage. Noise pollution along the otherwise peaceful valley could also occur.

However as a sometime user of Hahn airport, I do understand the communication argument and could also well use that motorway journeying from Belgium to Southern Germany or Austria.

Surely a less damaging route could have been found?