The Local Switzerland

How Switzerland’s largest cities are combating the heat

Mon, 18 Jul 2022 15:39:41 +0200

It has been extremely hot in Switzerland in the past weeks and forecasts call for more of the same. Mountains can provide some relief but what about urban centres? This is how Zurich and Geneva are tackling the heatwave.

Dust from the Sahara Desert covers parts of Switzerland

Tue, 15 Mar 2022 13:21:51 +0100

If you woke up this morning in your Swiss home and the world outside your window is yellow, this is why.

Is spring already springing up in Switzerland?

Mon, 14 Feb 2022 16:49:06 +0100

It may still be chilly in most Swiss regions, but warmer weather is coming our way.

EXPLAINED: Why warm winters are especially bad for Switzerland

Tue, 18 Feb 2020 16:55:42 +0100

The weather has been unseasonably warm throughout the country lately, with temperatures this Sunday reaching over 21 degrees in some parts of Switzerland. But as enjoyable as this springlike weather may be, it is a bad sign for the future, experts warn.

Swiss cities enjoy record sunny January, but what's next for winter?

Fri, 31 Jan 2020 12:07:49 +0100

Unlike the same period in 2019, when temperatures fell below 8° C in some regions of Switzerland, this January has been one of the mildest months on record.

Climate protesters block Geneva's private jet terminal

Sun, 17 Nov 2019 12:17:31 +0100

Dozens of climate activists blocked access to the private jet terminal at Geneva airport Saturday, demanding a halt to the "absurd" mode of luxury transportation.

Mont Blanc: Roads closed as experts warn glacier may collapse

Wed, 25 Sep 2019 15:37:22 +0200

Local authorities have closed roads after experts warned that a huge section of a glacier on the Italian side of Mont Blanc may be about to collapse.

How heatwaves are making the Swiss Alps more dangerous

Fri, 26 Jul 2019 14:16:04 +0200

High up in the natural wonder of the Alps, the climbers who spend their days among the rockfaces and glaciers have come to a grim conclusion: the mountains are falling down around them.

Youths rally across Europe in pre-vote climate protest

Sat, 25 May 2019 12:32:20 +0200

Hundreds of thousands of young climate activists rallied across Europe Friday ahead of EU Parliament elections as part of protests worldwide demanding action against global warming.

Thousands of Swiss students protest against climate inaction

Fri, 18 Jan 2019 14:15:24 +0100

Thousands of students in cities across Switzerland have been staging demonstrations over the lack of action to protect the environment and prevent climate change.

Last three years hottest on record: UN

Thu, 18 Jan 2018 22:22:57 +0100

The last three years were the hottest on record, the United Nations weather agency said on Thursday, citing fresh global data underscoring the dramatic warming of the planet.

Swiss scientists: climate change raises CO2 emissions from alpine streams

Fri, 09 Jun 2017 13:43:08 +0200

Scientists at Lausanne’s federal technology institute EPFL have discovered that alpine streams emit higher levels of carbon-dioxide (CO2) after a warmer than normal winter.

Switzerland lambasts US over climate accord decision

Fri, 02 Jun 2017 13:05:08 +0200

Swiss President Doris Leuthard says she regrets the United States’ decision, announced by President Trump, to pull out of the Paris climate change agreement.

Swiss study: snow to largely disappear from Alps by 2100

Fri, 17 Feb 2017 10:10:15 +0100

By the end of the century up to 70 percent of snow cover in the Alps will have melted and the ski season will be much shorter, Swiss researchers predict.

Zurich named ‘greenest’ city on the planet

Tue, 13 Sep 2016 12:44:07 +0200

Zurich is the most sustainable city in the world and has unbeatable environmental credentials, according to new research.

Killer kiwi plant could ‘invade’ Swiss forests

Wed, 13 Jul 2016 14:34:59 +0200

It may be tasty to eat, but the kiwi fruit grows on a plant that can strangle others. Now the plant, non-native to Switzerland, has been found growing in the wild in some parts of the country, causing concern it could take over forests and damage native plants.

Environment behind 1/4 of deaths globally: WHO

Tue, 15 Mar 2016 10:03:58 +0100

One in four deaths worldwide are due to environmental factors like air, water and soil pollution, as well as unsafe roads and workplace stress, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.

Swiss warn of glacier shedding massive chunk

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 17:03:00 +0200

A massive part of a glacier the size of 12 football fields in the Swiss Alps could break off, local authorities warned, after the discovery of an enormous crevasse in the glacier.