Road traffic According to Rösti, the risk to the population during storms is never zero

Environment Minister Albert Rösti believes that the risk of further damage caused by storms in Switzerland cannot be prevented. "There is no life without risk," said Rösti in Tuesday's "Tagesgespräch" on SRF radio. This is particularly the case in mountainous areas.

That is why we do not want to sell the population a "zero risk". He also believes the experts who say that climate change has an influence here. The events are becoming "more intense". In addition, more people live in endangered areas than in the past.

This is why the level of protection needs to be adjusted. We must now ensure that the events have less impact. The federal government alone pays CHF 160 million a year for protection measures. However, the money could be used in an even more targeted and risk-based manner, said Rösti. "In other words, targeted where it is determined that the risk is greater due to weather events."

One lesson learned from the recent storms is that "we need to bring the new Hydraulic Engineering Act into force very quickly", said Rösti. This provides for even more targeted risk reduction, including in terms of spatial planning. "We want to achieve even greater protection with the same means."

The Rhone correction - which is currently on hold - is a project that will be finalized over 20 years, with the federal government providing more than one billion Swiss francs in support, explained Rösti. The canton of Valais now wants to re-examine whether around 150 hectares of crop rotation areas should or must be lost. This is up to the canton.

No compromises on safety

However, the head of the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) said that it was undisputed that safety could not be compromised in this conflict of interest. The federal government will also be looking at this.

It is also clear that, given the expected duration until the completion of the project, "there will still be one or two damages". In view of the recent floods and landslides in Switzerland, the corrections made to the Rhone and Rhine so far have already prevented "much greater damage potential" than the current one, said Rösti.

SDA