Chapter 264: Chapter 13, Everyone is Responsible for Protecting the Environment
Vienna Palace

“Your Majesty,” Prime Minister Felix suggested, “our colonial territories are continuously expanding. It is essential to establish a Colonial Department dedicated to managing colonial affairs.”

After some calculation, Franz suddenly realized that the Austrian Empire had also become a colonial power, at least in terms of colonial area.

Since 1854, within just over a year, more than thirty colonial strongholds have been established on the African continent, and over two hundred thousand immigrants have been dispatched.

Among European nations, Austria was the most proactive in developing the African continent. At this time, without a specialized department to manage it, chaos would easily ensue.

After some thought, Franz asked, “We indeed need to establish a Colonial Department now. Prime Minister, whom do you think would be suitable for the position?”

Prime Minister Felix suggested, “Your Majesty, how about appointing Count József Jellacic as the Colonial Minister?”

Count József Jellacic, a Croatian, is one of the three historical saviors of the Austrian Empire, having led the Croatian Militia to suppress the Hungarian rebellion.

As time passed and ethnic integration progressed, the Vienna Government inevitably had to utilize minority officials to demonstrate equality among ethnic groups.

Against this backdrop, as a loyal supporter of the Empire, Jellacic stood out.

After thinking it over, Franz said, “Then let’s appoint József Jellacic as the Colonial Minister. I remember that, during the rebellion suppression in 1848, he made significant contributions for the Empire.

In the recent years, he has also done well in his role as the governor of Croatia. He has achieved notable results in both road construction and economic development.”

The Cabinet could not be controlled by Germans indefinitely, as it would not be conducive to national unity. In Franz’s view, as long as the loyalty was solid and capabilities were sufficient, regardless of background, they could be promoted and utilized.

József Jellacic could perfectly serve as a prime example. A few years ago, when Franz had just ascended to power, he inevitably had to compromise with the German nobility for support.

Now that his position was secure, promoting some individuals according to his own will was naturally not a problem.

What surprised Franz was that before he could act, Prime Minister Felix had already taken the initiative. This way, the Prime Minister would have to bear the pressure from the Viennese nobility.

After some thought, Franz abandoned this concern. Prime Minister Felix was now seen as a national hero in the eyes of Germans, no longer the Butcher Prime Minister from before.

With this halo, even if the Conservative nobility were dissatisfied, they could not shake his position.

The better the New Holy Roman Empire developed, the brighter the halo on Prime Minister Felix’s head shined—any minor opposition could simply be quashed.

Archduke Louis hesitated to speak. Now that the Reformist faction was in power, as a leader of the Conservative faction, his presence in the Cabinet was diminishing.

At this point, opposing the Emperor would bring him no benefit and might even end his political career prematurely.

Army Minister Prince Windischgrätz, somewhat hesitant, said, “Your Majesty, the Sinai Peninsula is a vast desert, and the island only has a few oases where nomadic tribes dwell.

It is impossible for us to reap any benefits there, and establishing administrative structures would likely mean our tax revenue wouldn’t even cover the salaries of tax officials.

We have stationed two infantry regiments on the island, which is an utter waste; the locals can’t even sustain their food supply, and during the dry season, water resources become a problem.”

This was a troublesome issue; in that era, Franz could not afford the luxury of producing freshwater for the troops to use.

But to secure influence over the area, it wasn’t possible to be without a garrison. The presence of two infantry regiments had already been reduced as much as possible.

Without troops there now, once the Suez Canal excavation began, it would not be so easy to station them there again.

Franz asked, “The government will consider the issue of costs; food can be transported from within the country. I’ve never thought of making the Sinai Peninsula self-sufficient, so is water the only issue?”

“Yes, Your Majesty!” Prince Windischgrätz replied.

Thousands of soldiers stationed there meant daily consumption of large amounts of water. The key reason the population on the Sinai Peninsula couldn’t grow was the lack of water.

Without solving this problem, even if they wanted to deploy a large force, it wouldn’t be possible.

Looking at the map, Franz continued to ask, “Prime Minister, how many natives are there on the Sinai Peninsula?”

After some thought, Prime Minister Felix found it impossible to provide an accurate figure and reluctantly replied, “Your Majesty, the Egyptian Government has not conducted a census of the nomadic tribes on the island; we can only roughly estimate a population of about thirty-five thousand.”

Hearing this number, Franz broke into a smile.

“The issue of water resources should be easily resolved, as far as I know, the locals mainly live by raising camels and sheep, rarely cultivating crops.

These livestock are major consumers of water resources. If the hundreds of thousands of animals on the island were gone, then the water supply everyone is worried about would no longer be a problem.”

Prime Minister Felix reminded, “Your Majesty, these livestock are the livelihood of the local people. If we do not allow them to raise animals, it is feared that the locals will find it difficult to survive.”

Franz said with a look of divine conviction, “This is a minor issue, just tens of thousands of people. Ask the Egyptian Government if they are willing to accept them, and if they refuse, arrange for their resettlement in the West African colonies.

Once the local people have all left, the water resources used by these tens of thousands of people should be enough for our two battalions of soldiers to consume, right?

The natural environment of the Sinai Peninsula has already been devastated by the locals. In history, this place was once a fertile land with lush trees and herds of cattle and sheep everywhere.

If we do not protect it now and allow them to continue destroying it, it won’t be long before the local ecology is completely ruined, and the once beautiful Sinai Peninsula will turn into a dead island.

Now, if we relocate the people above and ban agricultural production and animal husbandry, we could save the precious local water resources.

Our garrison forces could use their spare time outside of training to plant trees or grass on the island, continuously expanding the oasis area, and contribute to beautifying the earth.”

At that moment, Franz seemed to have become an environmentalist. It definitely wasn’t for the purpose of solving the garrison’s water problems that he wanted to carry out migration!

Hundreds of thousands of livestock are major water users, consuming a significant amount of water resources annually.

If we use these precious freshwater resources for afforestation, we could easily increase the forest area by several tens of square kilometers each year, and even more if used for grass cultivation.

Although it may seem insignificant at present, it is a virtuous cycle! Theoretically, after a few hundred years of such efforts, the Sinai Peninsula Desert Oasis Project could be completed.

Seizing the opportunity, Archduke Louis buttressed with a flattery, “Your Majesty speaks with reason. For the natural environment of the Sinai Peninsula, we must take immediate action.”

Of course, no one would oppose Franz’s proposal. The development of the African Continent requires a large population, and dispersing and settling the people from the Sinai Peninsula there would serve dual purposes.

Of course, if the Egyptian Government is willing to accept these people, all the better, as the Vienna Government could save a considerable amount of money.

Finance Minister Karl said painfully, “Your Majesty, let’s temporarily set aside the issue of migration from the Sinai Peninsula!

The refugees we have received in the Dalmatia Region have not all been relocated yet. Blindly increasing immigration now would be too much of a logistical strain on the colonies.

Last year, our colonies suffered a net loss of 588,000 shied, and this year, our colonies are expected to have a net loss exceeding 1.2 million shied. Quickly turning a loss into a profit is of immediate concern.”

The Austrian Empire’s colonial activities are in a net investment stage. To see returns, one must wait until the colonies enter into a production phase.

The current African colonial strongholds, aside from opening up farms locally, have only been fishing at sea or hunting to make up for food shortages.

Lumber yards are under construction, but due to attacks from native tribes, they are still in the process of being cleared and are not yet ready for production.

As for the so-called cotton plantations, rubber plantations, coffee plantations… they are all in the planning stages, and capitalists and nobility are sending people to investigate.

In the short term, these industries will not see any profits. Without the discovery of mineral resources, it would be quite difficult to achieve a balanced budget within three to five years.

This is also why countries are reluctant to invest in colonies; the return on investment cycle is just too long. With the same amount of time, it would be better to look for colonies with gold and silver mines to develop, or to directly exploit the native people.

It’s a difference in management philosophy. Franz’s main purpose for developing the African Continent was to address the shortage of resources within the country and to reduce the emigration of domestic populaces.

While African colonies have been established for a short period, under the promotion of the Vienna Government, more than thirty thousand people have spontaneously joined the ranks of immigrants.

These people are the main force behind the development of the African Continent. Now, simply by registering, they can be employed by the government, earn more than double the salary of the local wage, and even take on roles as officials within the colonial government.

If one wants to get rich, they should join the expansion team. All spoils seized from clearing native tribes belong to the individual, with a bonus awarded upon completion of the task.

Franz confidently said, “Do not worry, our colonies on the African Continent are still in a primitive state, having never been developed.

According to geologists, alluvial gold mines are very likely to be found along the riverbanks. Traces of gold have also been found in collected river sand, indicating a good chance of finding a large gold mine.

Discovering one big gold mine would recoup all our investments, and we’d make a huge profit from the vast fertile lands.

We are not in a hurry to move people from the Sinai Peninsula. We have plenty of time. Acting in two or three years would also be fine, and we can slowly increase the garrison.”