(as of September 2011)
Nuclear energy, energy efficiency, renewable energy sources
Following the nuclear disaster at Fukushima that resulted from the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan in March 2011, a plethora of procedural requests concerned energy issues were submitted in both the Council of States and the National Council which are now being dealt with by the Committees for the Environment, Spatial Planning and Energy. The main theme of these procedural requests is nuclear energy, and those motions calling for or at least concerning a stop to nuclear energy in Switzerland (11.3257 Green Party, 11.3426 BDP, 11.3436 Schmidt, 11.3548 Diener Lenz, 11.3582 Schwaller, 11.3651 Gutzwiller, 11.3549 Frick, 11.3616 Fetz) have been giving rise to the fiercest debates. Other motions concern energy efficiency and call, for example, for greater efficiency in public lighting (11.3415 BDP), efficiency standards for electrical appliances (11.3376 Noser) or energy-saving standards for new and renovated buildings (11.3449 Leutenegger Oberholzer). Yet other motions concern renewable energy sources. They demand, for example, that procedures authorising the production of renewable energy be speeded up (11.3403 FDP), that renewable energy sources with no cap on remuneration at cost price for electricity supplied to the national grid be promoted (11.3456 Bäumle) and that research in the field of renewable energy sources also be promoted (10.3609 Favre, 11.3184 Comte). In connection with these issues, the Federal Energy Strategy for 2050 and the associated Federal Council’s Action Plan have been discussed in detail by both CESPEs.
10.018 Popular initiative “Space for man and nature (Countryside initiative)”
10.019 Partial revision of the Spatial Planning Act
The popular initiative entitled “Space for man and nature (Countryside initiative)” aims to put a stop to the uncontrolled expansion of built-up areas in Switzerland and to better protect the countryside. This should be achieved by making better use of existing building zones and by calling on the Confederation to introduce provisions encouraging high quality development within existing urban areas. It also demands that the total area of building zones should not be expanded for a period of 20 years following the adoption of the new constitutional article. While the Federal Council recognises the aims of the initiative and shares the view that spatial planning measures to date have not succeeded in halting the scattered expansion of built-up areas and the loss of farmland, it does not believe that the introduction of an article into the constitution is the right approach. The Federal Council is therefore submitting an indirect counter-proposal to the popular initiative in the form of a partial revision of the Spatial Planning Act. The planned revision is limited to the issue of residential development; it specifies the content of cantonal structural plans and sets stricter conditions for the rezoning of land for building.
09.067 Revision of the CO2 Act and federal popular initiative “For a healthy climate”
The federal popular initiative “For a healthy climate” calls for a reduction of at least 30% in total emissions of greenhouse gases in Switzerland by 2020 on the basis of the figure for 1990. The background to this proposal is the demand that global climate warming should be limited to a maximum of 2°C in comparison with pre-industrial temperatures. Since, in the Federal Council’s opinion, the target of a 30% reduction in domestic levels set out in the federal constitution is too inflexible, its message on Swiss climate policy after 2012 constitutes an indirect counter-proposal to the popular initiative. The aim of the draft revised version of the CO2 Act is to achieve a 20% reduction in emissions of greenhouse gases by 2020 in order to slow down and manage climate change. The measures proposed include incentive taxes, binding target emission levels, emission compensation, continuing the emission trading system and increasing the promotion of efforts aimed at reducing emissions of greenhouse gases in education, research and development.
08.314 Council of States initiative St. Gallen. Construction outside building zones
The aim of the initiative submitted by the canton of St. Gallen is to introduce a change in legislation on development whereby certain changes to existing buildings outside designated building zones would be possible regardless of the situation on the fixed date of 1 July 1972 on which the consistent separation of building zones and non-building zones under federal law came into force. Both Committees for the Environment, Spatial Planning and Energy (CESPE) endorsed the initiative in January 2011. The CESPE-N then proceeded to draw up a revised version of Article 24c of the Spatial Development Act. Under the terms of the draft revised version residential farm buildings may be altered in part, extended within reason or rebuilt regardless of whether they were occupied by a person or people engaged in farming on the above-mentioned date. Precise wording in the proposed new Article should prevent the gradual loss of the agricultural character of the Swiss landscape through demolition and replacement of buildings.
02.418 Compensation for noise pollution caused by air traffic. Procedural guarantees
As part of parliamentary initiative 02.418, the CESPE-N has drawn up a bill entailing the partial revision of the Expropriation Act and the Aviation Act. The aim of this revision is to guarantee a simple legal procedure which complies with the terms of the Expropriation Act for the property owners concerned to claim compensation for loss of value caused by noise pollution.
According to the proposal, the time-limit for claims relating to the withdrawal of defence rights would start only when expropriation plans that include the property in question are duly submitted; also the time-limit would be increased to ten years. The proposed procedural guarantees would apply to all property owners, tenants and tenant farmers concerned. If necessary, compensation paid to a property owner for noise pollution would have to be passed on to tenants or tenant farmers.