Environment Report 2013: New Challenges for Switzerland

Bern, 09.07.2013 - According to the latest environment report published on 9 July 2013, the environment in Switzerland is not immune to the major global environmental trends of increasing pollution, the overexploitation of natural resources and climate warming. According to Bruno Oberle, Director of the FOEN, the only way to reduce the pressure on natural resources is to decouple economic growth from environmental pollution.

Swiss environmental policy has made significant progress since the 1980s: air quality has improved (see graphic G9 Air pollutant emissions, Environment Switzerland p. 15) and the state of the country's surface waters is generally good. The pollution of the soil with heavy metals, e.g. lead, is on the decline, and major advances have been made in the remediation of contaminated sites. However, according to the Environment Switzerland 2013 report, ambient concentrations of certain pollutants - particulate matter, ozone, nitrogen oxides, ammonia - regularly exceed limit values. Micropollutants originating from medicines, cosmetics and phytosanitary products are not filtered out by water treatment plants and cause damage to ecosystems. Moreover, the increasing pollution of the environment at global level has impacts in Switzerland, particularly in relation to air quality.   

Natural resources in Switzerland - water, air, soil, biodiversity, forest, landscape, climate stability and tranquillity - are subject to strong pressure from agriculture, high energy consumption, increasing mobility and the constant expansion of urban areas (see graphic G 5.1 Population and transport development, Environment Switzerland p. 35.). Switzerland generates considerable impacts on the natural resources of third countries. The country is importing increasing quantities of not only raw materials, energy agents and metals but also animal feed and food to cover its production and consumption requirements. Hence, over half of the environmental impact generated by Swiss consumption arises abroad (see graphic G3.2 Environmental impact of different consumption sectors, Environment Switzerland p. 30). Overall, Switzerland consumes more than twice the volume of resources available per inhabitant at global level.

Global climate development poses a strong risk for Switzerland: if global greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase at the current rate, the mean temperature increase compared with the pre-industrial period could reach six degrees by the end of the 21st century (see graphic G10 Annual mean temperature in Switzerland, Environment Switzerland - p 6). Warming on this scale could have serious consequences, in particular for agriculture, forestry, winter tourism and hydropower production. Damage arising from natural hazards is likely to continue to rise, especially in view of the increasing density of developed space.

Switzerland's responses to the new environmental challenges

In response to the new challenges facing the environment, the Swiss Parliament and Federal Council recently adopted a number of strategies and measures:

  • The new legislative provisions on the renaturation of surface waters, which were approved by Parliament in 2010, will enable the restoration of natural functions to watercourses, in particular the conservation of biodiversity and flood mitigation.
  • The provisions for financing the installation of systems for the elimination of micropollutants in wastewater in around 100 water treatment plants were approved by the Federal Council at the end of June 2013. Parliament may rule on this matter this year.
  • The Swiss Biodiversity Strategy, which defines the goals of Swiss policy for the conservation of biological diversity, was adopted by the Federal Council in 2012. The action plan that substantiates the strategy is due to be finalised by mid-2014.
  • The revision of the CO2 Act, which was approved by Parliament in 2012, stipulates that greenhouse gas emissions in Switzerland shall be reduced by at least 20% by 2020 as compared with 1990 levels.
  • The Strategy for Adaptation to Climate Change specifies the objectives, challenges and fields of action to be established to mitigate the impacts of climate change in Switzerland. The first part of the strategy was adopted by the Federal Council in 2012 and the corresponding action plan is due to be completed in late 2013.
  • The Green Economy Action Plan was approved by the Federal Council in early 2013. The plan contains several measures relating to consumption and production, waste, and raw materials. It is intended as an indirect counterproposal to the popular initiative "For a sustainable and resource-efficient economy (green economy)".

Decoupling economic growth from environmental pollution

The only way of reducing the pressure on natural resources is to decouple economic growth from environmental pollution through the establishment of a green economy writes Bruno Oberle, Director of the Federal Office of the Environment in the Environment Switzerland 2013 report. As he notes elsewhere, today, environmental policy encompasses all policy areas. For example, the Swiss Confederation's new Agriculture Policy 2014-17 constitutes a welcome advance in relation to the indemnification of services provided by agriculture for the promotion of biodiversity. The decision taken by Switzerland to withdraw from nuclear power and develop hydropower production as a result shall also incorporate provisions for the preservation and restoration of lakes and watercourses.


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