Over the last 20 years, there have been an average of 21 avalanche deaths per year in Switzerland. During the winter of 2023/24, 23 lives were cut short by avalanches, according to data published by the Swiss Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research (WSL) in Davos, a figure slightly above average. At 261, the number […]
Bumper season for Swiss mountain lift companies
The recent winter season was positive for Switzerland’s mountain resort lift operators. However, the picture was mixed with low altitude resorts missing out on much of the joy, reported Switzerland’s mountain lift association this week. By the end of April 2024, the number of first-time visitors to Swiss ski areas overall was up 3% compared […]
Might record snow levels increase Swiss flood risk?
Winter and recent spring snowfalls have brought record amounts of snow to Switzerland. Experts ponder whether this could lead to floods as it did in 1999. Snowfall in Switzerland this winter was contrasted by altitude. Down low (below 2,000m) there was significant rain, leaving many low altitude ski resorts short of snow. However, above 2,000m […]
Recent cold threatens Swiss grape harvest
The severe drop in temperatures across Switzerland last week froze large areas of wine grape vines. Parts of Vaud and Geneva have been particularly hard hit, reported RTS. Wine growers now fear for their coming grape harvest. While it is too soon to quantify potential harvest damage, one farmer in the canton of Geneva reported […]
Switzerland breaks electricity record in 2023
Electricity production in Switzerland rose by 13.5% in 2023, reaching a new record of 72.1 billion kWh, reported the Federal Office of Electricity (FOE). Production from both hydropower plants (+21.7%) and nuclear plants (+1%) was higher. Hydro (56.6%) and nuclear (32.4%) made up 89% of the total. The remaining 11% came from thermal and renewable sources. The […]
Swiss buying ever larger cars
According to the Federal Statistical Office (FSO), nearly 35,000 new vehicles were put into circulation across Switzerland in March 2024. And while this figure is 5% below the number in March 2023, the size of private vehicles rose, a now well established trend. The only group of private vehicles rising in number was non-plug-in hybrids […]
Swiss government surprised by ECHR climate change ruling
This week, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled the Swiss government violated the Human Rights Convention on climate change in a case brought by a climate organisation and four Swiss women claiming to be victims of insufficiently mitigated climate change. Eight years ago, a group of Swiss senior citizens, known as the Climate […]
Federal Council rejects anti-fur and anti-fois gras initiatives
Switzerland’s Federal Council, or cabinet, announced this week that it does not support two initiatives aimed at banning the importation into Switzerland of fois gras and fur products produced cruelly. In December 2023, the Swiss Animal Alliance submitted the two popular initiatives, one aimed at banning the import of foie gras and one aimed at […]
Swiss has no plan to end flights between Geneva and Zurich
Airlines are under pressure to cut short flights between locations that are well connected by rail. The logic being that trains have lower emissions that planes. Regular flights between Geneva and Zurich have long been criticised by environmentalists. However, this week, Swiss said it has no plans to cut flights between Switzerland’s two main cities, […]
Avalanche kills three in Zermatt
On Monday 1 April 2024 shortly after 2 pm, an avalanche at the ski resort of Zermatt killed three people and injured a fourth, reported Valais Police. The avalanche occurred in an off-piste area in the Riffelberg area on the Gornergrat side of the resort. The victims include a 15-year old American, a 25 year […]