Switzerland urged to reach net zero by 2035 ‘to be fair’

© Keystone / Christian Beutler

Switzerland should aim to be climate neutral by 2035 instead of 2050 to limit global warming to 1.5°C, say some scientists.

In a studyExternal link released on Friday, the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) analysed Swiss commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The results indicate that if the rest of the world followed Switzerland’s lead, it would only be possible to limit global warming to 1.7°C to 2°C.

Switzerland has set itself the goal of being climate-neutral by 2050 and reducing greenhouse gas emissions to zero. In this way, the government wants to ensure that Switzerland makes its contribution to limiting global warming to 1.5°C.

The study examined the connections between the CO₂ budget of individual countries and global warming, and thus also the fair distribution of emission reductions. The study’s authors claim that anything less than achieving net zero by 2035 would be unfair to those countries that have emitted little CO₂ so far. 

“If one compares this with dividing up a cake, then those who have already eaten the largest pieces would receive a larger share of the rest of the cake,” the study says. Countries with low per capita emissions are unlikely to accept the redistribution of responsibility in these terms.