Tag Archives: environment

When we pay electricity bills we also have to pay for the infrastructure that brings it to our homes. Part of this infrastructure is run by Swissgrid. On 20 March 2024, Swissgrid announced a cut in what it charges from 2025. Photo by Pok Rie on Pexels.comIn 2025, a household with an annual consumption of 4,500 kWh will pay an average of CHF 77 (-16%) for the services provided by Swissgrid instead of the CHF 92 it will pay in 2024. These charges corresponds to 5% of the total bill. So a...

From 1 January 2024, electric vehicles (EV) will be taxed like their petrol and diesel equivalents, announced Switzerland’s Federal Council this week, reported RTS. Photo by Kindel Media on Pexels.comCars imported into Switzerland suffer a 4% tax. EVs are currently exempted from this tax. From the beginning of next year all cars including EVs will be taxed. The exemption, introduced in 1997, was designed to increase the rate of uptake of electric cars. However, on Wednesday the Federal...

read aloud pause X The European bison, a species that differs slightly from its north American cousin, died out in Europe. Now it is to be reintroduced in Switzerland. Can a densely populated country tolerate such a large wild animal? Christian Raaflaub Radio, TV and online journalist.  More from this author | German Department Share Facebook Twitter E-mail Print Copy link Otto Holzgang, a biologist, stretches one arm out and...

At 37% of the total, one-person households are now the most common way to live in Switzerland, according to recently published data by Switzerland’s Federal Statistical Office (FSO). Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.comThe data from 2022, show that 37% of households contained one person, followed by the 32% that contained two, 13% that contained three, 12% with four and 5% with five or more. This does of course not mean that 37% of the population lived alone. Households of five or...

This week, VSE, an electricity association, said pricey electricity markets will likely lead to even higher Swiss electricity prices in 2024. Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.comPrices rose on average by 27% (+6 cents/kWh) in Switzerland in 2023. In 2024 VSE expects them to rise by a further 12% (+3 cents/kWh). This would bring the average price to almost 30 cents/kWh. The price rise estimates are based on the results of a survey of 135 the association’s members. The price rises are driven...

This week, the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) published its predictions and ambitions for electric transport infrastructure. Photo by Gustavo Fring on Pexels.comBy 2035, SFOE expects more than half of all passenger cars in Switzerland to be electric. This means the country has around 12 years to complete its charging infrastructure, it said. The SFOE study estimates there will be 2.8 million plug-in vehicles on Swiss roads by 2035, and by 2050 they should be...

This week, the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) published its predictions and ambitions for electric transport infrastructure. Photo by Gustavo Fring on Pexels.comBy 2035, SFOE expects more than half of all passenger cars in Switzerland to be electric. This means the country has around 12 years to complete its charging infrastructure, it said. The SFOE study estimates there will be 2.8 million plug-in vehicles on Swiss roads by 2035, and by 2050 they should be the dominant type of...

Electric bike theft has tripled in Switzerland since 2019, reported RTS. Photo by alex on Pexels.comRecent police statistics show rising levels of theft across the country with rates rising most sharply in Basel and Geneva, two cities bordering on neighbouring countries. In 2022, 2,000 electric bikes were reported stolen, a figure double the number in 2021. Zurich, Switzerland’s largest city, reported the greatest number of thefts, followed by Geneva and Basel. On a per capita...

According to a report published this week, 40% of employees in Switzerland are predicted to regularly work from home within the next 10 years. Photo by Justin Neal on Pexels.comIn 2001, less than 1% of Switzerland’s employees did more than half of their work from home. By 2019, the same figure was 25%. Then Covid-19 struck. During the first lockdown in spring of 2020, 50% of workers worked from home, 20% partially and 30% exclusively. Since then many have returned to the office. But...

On 31 August 2022, when an energy shortage loomed, Switzerland’s federal government launched a campaign to cut the nation’s energy consumption. Targets were set to cut gas consumption by 15% and electricity use by 10%. Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.comData published this week showed cuts to gas consumption exceeded the voluntary target set, while cuts to electricity were well below, reported RTS. Gas consumption in Switzerland fell by nearly 18%, well in excess of the 15% target. Electricity...