Court rules Dresden tunnel would damage Elbe more than bridge

A Dresden court has ruled that a tunnel under the Elbe River would be more environmentally damaging than a proposed bridge that caused UNESCO to warn the city it could lose its World Heritage Site status.

Published: 20 March 2009 08:34 CET

Court rules Dresden tunnel would damage Elbe more than bridge

Photo: DPA

The written verdict in the ongoing dispute over how the city will ease traffic congestion said that a tunnel would endanger fish and water flora that would not recover for some time after the construction, the Dresdner Neueste Nachrichten reported on Friday.

The dispute has been running since 2007 when UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) threatened to take away the World Heritage status over the bridge, which would spoil views of the Baroque city. In 2008, UNESCO recommended that Dresden build a tunnel instead because it would be less invasive to the scenery.