Booze ban for rubber dinghy revellers to be lifted
Every summer, Swiss rivers fill up with people cooling off on rubber boats.
Keystone
Connoisseurs of the regular Swiss summer pastime of drifting down rivers on rubber dinghies will most likely no longer have to watch what they drink. Regulations are set to change in the next few years, lifting the alcohol limit on people using small water craft.
This content was published on
1 minute
swissinfo.ch/mga
Parliament has backed a proposal to lift the limit partly because it is impractical to enforce. Every summer Swiss rivers and lakes fill up with people cooling off on a variety of rubber boats.
Alcohol regularly plays a part in this pursuit, but keeping track of how much everyone has drunk has proved a difficult task.
The Federal Office of Transport has proposed amending statutes governing alcohol consumption that currently stipulates the same limit for rubber dinghies and large boats.
Exceptions will soon apply to craft shorter than 2.5 metres, beach boats, canoes, racing rowing boats, windsurfing and kiteboards and non-motorised rubber boats up to four metres in length. The change is expected to be introduced in 2020.
But there is a darker side to water sports. Between 2007 and 2016, 448 people drowned in Switzerland, according to official statistics. Some 48 died in boating accidents and 166 while swimming in rivers and lakes.
More
More
Why today’s Swiss waterways are fit for swimming
This content was published on
Until the 1950s, waste was dumped directly into Swiss rivers and lakes, resulting in dying fish, bad smells and swimming bans. Much has changed.
Swiss price watchdog slams excessive prices for generic medicines
This content was published on
The cheapest generic medicines available in Switzerland are more than twice as expensive as in other countries, according to a study by the Swiss price watchdog.
Nature should not figure in net zero calculations: academic study
This content was published on
The natural removal of CO2 from the atmosphere by forests or oceans should not be included in the net-zero balance of climate protection measures, argue researchers.
This content was published on
None of the 15 major Swiss retail banks is meeting international climate and biodiversity targets, according to a ranking by WWF Switzerland.
This content was published on
Nestlé's new CEO Laurent Freixe, has presented plans for the future of the world's largest food company, after his first few weeks in office.
Swiss foreign minister calls on Moscow to end Ukraine war
This content was published on
It's high time Moscow ended its war against Ukraine, Swiss foreign minister Ignazio Cassis tells the UN Security Council.
This content was published on
The only alternative to the UN Palestinian agency’s work in Gaza is to allow Israel to run services there, Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General, told reporters in Geneva on Monday.
Study reveals food culture differences between Switzerland and neighbours
This content was published on
Three-quarters of Swiss people consider eating to be a pleasurable, social activity, a new survey reveals. Healthy eating, however, plays a much less important role, it found.
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.
Read more
More
The dark side of the urban swimming trend
This content was published on
Swimming in rivers has become increasingly popular in Switzerland. But the trend means more swimmers are being saved from drowning. Over the last 20 years, rescue operations on the Rhine in Basel have steadily increased. Now a patrol cruises the Rhine for ten hours every day in summer. Fire brigades, border control and the police…
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.