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"Sustainability" is a fancy catchphrase. Imbued with life, it can have far-reaching influences on the way we think and live. But what does it mean to manage a refuge hut at two and a half thousand meters above sea level in a sustainable manner, in a way that climate and nature-friendly? Erlanger Hütte in the northern Geigenkamm provides exemplary answers.
First of all, managing a hut in Tirol's high mountains is one thing: very tedious. Christian Rimml, who has been tenant of the hut for many years, puts it succinctly: "It's really quite tough!" Undoubtedly not quite as tough as in the 1930s, when the Erlangen section of the German Alpine Club built the refuge hut of the same name.
Christian Rimml, born in St. Leonhard in Pitztal in 1979, is a trained kitchen chef. In 2008 he voluntarily exchanged the demanding and strenuous work as sous-chef and later head chef in 4-star restaurants for the challenge of 17-hour days at Erlanger Hütte. Sustainable, resource-friendly and therefore climate-friendly management was a matter of course for Christian and his family even before these buzzwords were far from being the order of the day for the general public.
Lake Wettersee directly next to the hut supplies electricity and drinking water — "I don't want a diesel generator," says Christian. "And everything we buy, from potatoes to meat, we produce on our own farm in Pitztal or buy it from local farmers." Supplies and fresh groceries are delivered by air. This concession to contemporary technical possibilities is logistically necessary, the strict Tirolean laws for helicopter flights allow so much comfort. At the start of the season in June alone, the helicopter flies to northern Geigenkamm up to 15 times, heavily laden. Mountaineers who have made the effort of a five-hour climb from Umhausen or Tumpen finally arrive at Erlanger Hütte with great hunger and thirst.
Farming in the mountains is only possible on a very small scale and is therefore not particularly profitable. But without this type of agriculture, the natural and cultural space that locals and guests alike appreciate could not be preserved. Additionally, small farmers - usually family businesses - stand for high quality instead of mass production, short distances to consumers in chic Tirolean, toque-awarded restaurants as well as in rustic refuge huts in the high mountains - this is climate protection for true enjoyment.
Already since 1996, Erlanger Hütte has had the Tirolean environmental seal "Working in close touch with nature", which has to be renewed every few years: the seal aims, among other things, at waste water treatment and the correct functioning of the fully biological sewage treatment system. This includes constant, quite cost-intensive structural adaptations of the sewage treatment system to the applicable sewage standards. The "Environmental Seal of Quality of the Alpine Clubs" that Erlanger Hütte has also carried for more than 20 years, places a focus on waste avoidance. For the Rimml family it means not offering butter and jam in portions at the breakfast buffet. "We make all the jams ourselves anyway and fill them in jars," explains Rimml. By the way, the bread is also homemade by Christian's wife Anita.
Hiking and mountaineering is booming. The experienced hut tenant observes two trends: "Guests are becoming more and more demanding and want more luxury on the mountain. No WiFi or not being able to shower every day is a minor catastrophe for many." On the other hand: "More and more young people are drawn to the mountains. And interestingly, it's the young who don't need the luxury. One often thinks that they can no longer do without a mobile phone because they grew up with it. But in fact, they even love it and say: 'Sh... cell phone!' and are immediately happy when they don't have to be online for once."
Even after almost a quarter of a century on the mountain, being a hut tenant is "still my dream job," Christian Rimml emphatically states. What is particularly annoying about hut life? Christian has to think for a moment and then says: "Self-catering people who simply leave their rubbish behind." Addendum: "But these are actually a few exceptions, most of our guests already know quite well how to behave on the mountain."
If a hut is awarded the environmental seal of approval, the section - as the owner - is responsible for setting up an environmentally friendly supply and disposal infrastructure. The hut tenant is responsible for the best possible use and maintenance of all environmental facilities. The environmental quality seal is intended to make guests aware of the special commitment of Alpine Clubs and their partners to environmental protection.(more details)
The journalist, author and presenter from Innsbruck loves the good life in the valley and the happy feeling of freedom high up in the mountains.
