Gerhard Köfer calls for drought relief in Carinthia

Gerhard Köfer, leader of Team Kärnten, has called for state and federal aid to support Carinthian agriculture following severe drought conditions. Calculations from the Austrian Hail Insurance indicate that dryness caused approximately 70 million euros in damages to the region's agriculture through early August, with some farms facing crop losses near 100 percent.

To fund these emergency payments, Köfer suggested cutting political party subsidies and consolidating social associations. He also expressed support for a public referendum regarding a 380 kV power line, arguing that the current plan to use overhead lines is an unnecessary intervention in nature and that underground cabling, while more expensive, is a standard practice elsewhere in Europe.