In the internal coalition dispute over the introduction of a water cent, CSU parliamentary group leader Klaus Holetschek has surprisingly put forward a new proposal. “We have put forward a proposal to the Free Voters,” he said at the closed meeting of CSU state parliament members in the Upper Franconian monastery of Banz. Specifically, the concept envisages, among other things, a tax of ten cents per cubic meter.
According to participants, just in time for the meeting, Holetschek presented his party with a survey commissioned by the CSU from Infratest dimap, according to which 54 percent of those surveyed were fundamentally prepared to contribute financially to protecting water in Bavaria. 37 percent rejected this and nine percent did not provide an answer. A fee of ten cents per cubic meter would mean an average payment of four to five euros per year per person in a household.
Apart from the amount of the fee, the CSU proposal also makes no distinction as to what type of groundwater is involved. So-called deep groundwater, which is also often pumped out by commercial companies to produce mineral water, for example, would thus be subject to the same costs as groundwater close to the surface. To better protect deep groundwater, the Greens, for example, had presented a staggered pricing concept. According to the information, the discussion proposal presented by Holetschek stipulates that the water cent is initially to be paid by all users without exception. Exceptions, a reward system for savings measures and an exemption limit for certain customers are also conceivable, it was said.
According to reports, Holetschek stressed that the key points now presented are not set in stone, but rather a basis for further discussions – both with the Free Voters within the government and with representatives of agriculture, municipal associations and the economy. It is important to the CSU that the levy can be implemented “fairly, justly and unbureaucratically”. Holetschek also believes that there is no need for new control systems to monitor the withdrawal. In his speech, he reportedly stressed that the state must first demonstrate new trust here. After a few years, an evaluation can then show whether the system is working.
:How the Free Voters are using the water cent to pursue clientele politics
Private households are supposed to pay the water cent, but exceptions to the fee are made for farmers and companies: The CSU and the water suppliers are protesting against the Free Voters’ plans – and even their local politicians are not happy with the idea.
Holetschek also made it clear that, in his view, the revenue should not only be used for the construction and maintenance of water pipes, but also explicitly for the protection of groundwater and drinking water. The water cent already exists in 13 of 16 federal states, some of which have been in place for many years. Anyone who pumps water must pay the fee. The fee varies greatly depending on the state and can reach up to around 30 cents per cubic meter.
In the coalition of the CSU and the Free Voters, the introduction of the water cent has long been a controversial issue – after much back and forth, the responsible Minister for the Environment, Thorsten Glauber (Free Voters), initially put forward a proposal, which was then withdrawn by his own party leader, Economics Minister Hubert Aiwanger. Aiwanger had called for exceptions for farmers and industry.
The Greens in the state parliament had also put forward a proposal for the water cent. The concept envisages a price of eight cents per cubic meter for the extraction of groundwater, 100 cents per cubic meter for deep groundwater, and 2.5 cents per cubic meter for extraction from surface waters such as lakes and rivers. In order to record and bill the water cent, the meter readings on digital water meters will be used – similar to electricity.