Traffic is the biggest driver of global warming in Switzerland, said Green parliamentary group leader Aline Trede. The National Road Fund should therefore pay for climate change-related heat problems.
The Greens argue that heat is increasingly becoming a health problem in cities, especially for older people. Sunshades and water sprinklers are not enough, said Anina Ineichen, a member of the Basel City Green Party council; more green spaces and large, shady and cooling trees are needed.
The Greens also want to extend short-time working compensation to cover companies that are unable to work due to unbearable heat or storm damage. This would mitigate the danger of workers being made redundant.
Other points include cross-departmental climate coordination at federal level and climate insurance to cover damage caused by extreme natural events. Trede said that the federal government must seek solutions to the question of how to insure these losses of around CHF300 million per year.
Finally, the Greens want to double Switzerland’s contribution to international climate financing to CHF1 billion.
More
Debate
Hosted by:
Patricia Islas
What can be done to protect people against the effects of heatwaves?
In many parts of the world people are increasingly suffering from intense heat. How do you cope with the rising temperatures?
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, if you want to learn more about how we use technology, click here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
Popular Stories
More
Alpine Environment
My grandmother has lived in the same Swiss village for 100 years
Bodycams: essential for good law enforcement, or a privacy risk?
Did you ever come across bodycams in your place of residence and if so, how do you think the use of bodycams alter the relationship between the public and (transport) police?
What can be done to protect biodiversity in your country?
Swiss voters are set to decide on a people’s initiative calling for better protection of ecosystems in the country. Have your say on the September 22 vote.
Humanitarian law “not an à la carte right”: Swiss foreign minister
This content was published on
UN Security Council members, with the exception of Moscow, are in Geneva for the 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions.
Two dead after glider crash in southern Switzerland
This content was published on
Two people died after their glider crashed in canton Valais on Friday afternoon. The police said the victims were Swiss nationals, aged 72 and 46, who had apparently taken off from canton Aargau.
Scientists alarmed by poor state of biodiversity in Switzerland
This content was published on
Over 100 researchers have sounded the alarm over the state of biodiversity in Switzerland stating that "rapid and effective" measures are needed to strengthen its protection.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.