‘Slow Water’: Swiss farmers prepare for climate crisis

Urs Burri stands next to the artificial pond built on his farm in Ellbach, in canton Lucerne. The water collected is slowly released into the ground below. Luca Beti

Prolonged droughts and heavy rainfall are putting ever greater strain on Swiss agriculture. In canton Lucerne, a farmer is trying out various ways to retain more water in the soil, protect the ground and ensure fodder for his livestock. His farm is one of over 110 taking part in the "Slow Water" project.

From a hilltop on Urs Burri’s farm in Ellbach, a fine view unfolds over the rolling countryside in the Napf region of canton Lucerne, central Switzerland.

“It’s an oasis,” says Burri. “Isn’t it amazing?”.

On this day in late July, however, many meadows and pastures are yellow-brown, the grass stubby and withered. Amid this arid landscape lies a pond created by the farmer last spring. “Water is life,” he says. “There are dragonflies. Wild ducks sometimes come and swim here.”

Thanks to this pool and two smaller retention basins, which slowly release water through drainage pipes, the grass nearby is lush and green. Burri introduced these two measures to counter the increasingly frequent weather extremes, including the current drought.

“Nowadays rainfall is unevenly distributed,” he laments. “Sometimes it pours with rain, then not a drop falls for weeks on end.”

The climate crisis is threatening his livelihood. “As a farmer, the land is my capital. If it produces little or nothing, how can I feed my cows, which much of my income depends on?” he asks.

On the family-run biodynamic farm, Burri, who is in his 40s, keeps suckler cows, pigs, hens, turkeys, bees and dogs. There is also an orchard with some 80 fruit trees. The hilly landscape is made up of pastureland, hay meadows and a few fields for cereal crops.

>>Switzerland is not running out of water. But water resources are unevenly distributed, as we explain in this article:

A paradigm shift for farmers

To counteract the changing conditions, characterised by long dry spells followed by torrential downpours, Burri has been part of the Slow WaterExternal link project for two-and-a-half years now. The initiative is backed by the Federal Office for Agriculture and co-funded by the cantons of Basel Country and Lucerne.

“The project focuses on two main aspects,” explains Oliver SchillingExternal link, professor of hydrology at the University of Basel and an expert at the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag). “The first is to reduce erosion of the soil, which is a vital resource for agriculture. The second is to retain water in a given area for as long as possible, so it can be used when it becomes scarce, and farmers don’t have to resort to irrigation at once, for example by tapping into the water supply network.”

Around 110 farms in the pilot regions in the cantons of Basel Country, Basel City and Lucerne have signed up to the Slow Water project. “In the [central] Swiss Plateau region, water can be drawn from the big rivers, lakes and groundwater reserves. But in the Alpine foothills, the Jura and upland areas, during long dry periods there are no alternatives,” Schilling says.

“Retaining water represents a paradigm shift compared with recent history, when many marshlands were drained to make them suitable for farming,” he adds. 

‘Slow Water’

The project, which was launched in 2024 and is due to run until 2030, seeks to retain water in the soil for longer, reduce erosion and flood risk, and safeguard agricultural production in Switzerland.

The aim is to reduce the use of water from external sources by more than 30% in crop production and more than 20% in livestock farming.

To achieve this, Slow Water has identified 15 measuresExternal link, divided into two categories. On the one hand, hydrotechnical measures are used to collect, slow down or distribute water. These include ponds, retention basins, soakaways, infiltration trenches, adjustable drainage systems and keylines. Agricultural practices, on the other hand, improve the soil’s ability to absorb and store water through less invasive tillage, humus enrichment, undersowing, hedgerows and agroforestry systems.

Understanding which trees cows like

The Napf region is known for its distinctive, hilly terrain, made up of a conglomerate of layers of rounded pebbles, cemented together by fine matter and covered by a thin layer of humus. “Human survival depends on these 10–12 centimetres of soil,” Burri says. “Far too little is being done to protect them.”

His involvement in Slow Water is also driven by this conviction. He wants to avoid losing his source of income due to erosion at all costs, but the benefits extend far beyond his farm. “It is the wider community that stands to gain the most. By slowing down water runoff and promoting infiltration, we replenish springs and groundwater and reduce the risk of flooding,” he points out.

“It is easier to divert water when it is gushing from a spring – all you need is a spade. To divert a raging torrent, however, you need a digger at the very least,” he says.

To date, the farmer has implemented various climate adaptation measures, including keylines. “These are furrows around 40 centimetres deep, dug horizontally along the contour lines. They promote water infiltration, slow erosion, retain water and channel it towards drier areas,” he explains.

He has also planted forage trees on the raised edges of the keylines. On the one hand, their roots stabilise the soil and the foliage provides shade; on the other, the plants supply the animals with minerals. “At this point, we need to work out which tree species the cows like,” he says.

Burri emphasises the importance of knowledge-sharing amongst farmers and teamwork between science and practice. The Slow Water project follows a participatory, bottom-up process. “The ideas drawn up in the office do not always pass the test on the ground. It is important to discuss them and combine them with the farmers’ know-how,” he says.

A keyline marked out along the slope on Urs Burri’s farm (to the right of the country lane). Fodder trees have been planted along its edges; these stabilise the soil, provide shade, help retain water and are a source of minerals for the cows. Luca Beti

Benefits of water retention

The pastures and meadows on Burri’s farm are dotted with sensors that measure rainfall, soil moisture, water levels and runoff, both in the places where measures have been taken and those left in the original state, which serve as control areas.

“The effects of the measures are not immediately apparent, and it may take years to see any real impact,” says Schilling, who is providing scientific support for the project in Ellbach.

The research team uses models that can simulate the entire water cycle: in the soil, on the surface and in the water table. “Our aim is to produce a national map showing which measures yield the best results in the different regions of Switzerland. We are already very close to achieving this,” the expert says.

Meanwhile, Burri is already seeing the first positive effects in the spots where water retention measures have been introduced, such as on a steeply sloping pasture that is very exposed to the sun. “Here, the soil is still soft and will absorb the water more effectively the next time it rains, meaning less erosion,” he says.

Drainage water from another bit of land is channelled down the slope through a perforated pipe and collected in a well. This is beneficial not just for the grassland but also the fruit trees, which Burri planted together with his father some 20 years ago.

Hopes for a better autumn

Burri knows that working with nature means being confronted with moments of uncertainty such as these, when all one can do is look on, powerless, as the heat scorches the meadows. However, he is neither fatalistic nor pessimistic. He is hoping for a late summer and a good autumn ahead for farming.

“With enough rainfall and high temperatures, we can still bring in enough hay to feed the livestock throughout the winter, without having to sell any of our animals,” he says.

At his side is his son, who is training to be a farmer, and it is to him that his final thoughts turn. “For future generations, I want to leave a land that is, if not better, at least as good as what I received from those who came before me.”

Impact of the drought on Swiss agriculture

Between April and June 2026, Swiss precipitation reached just 56% of the 1991 to 2020 average. Taking July into account too, the drought is comparable to those of 1976, 2003 and 2018. Taking July into account as well, the drought is comparable to those of 1976, 2003 and 2018.

The prolonged period of low rainfall is having a profound impact on Swiss agriculture. Milk production has fallen by up to 30%External link in some regions, including the canton of Fribourg, the Bernese Seeland, Jura and Central Switzerland.

In addition, cases of fever and diarrhoea have been reported in cows, stemming from a virus never before detected in Switzerland and mainly transmitted by small biting insects. It leads to a drop in milk production.

The shortage of grass was already forcing many farms to dip into their winter reserves as early as July and to sell some of their livestock. In June and July, around 70,000 cattle (excluding calves) were slaughtered, compared with just over 60,700 in the same period in 2025. This represents an increase of over 15%, according to the Swiss meat industry association, Proviande.

The cost of crop irrigation is estimated at several thousand francsExternal link (several thousand US dollars) a week. Farmers’ associations are therefore calling on major retailersExternal link to help cover the outlay and be more flexible regarding compliance with product quality standards (size, shape and appearance).

Around 1,100 farms have already reported drought damage to the insurance organisation Schweizer HagelExternal link, which protects the agricultural sector from the effects of extreme weather. Summer crops, above all potatoes, maize, sugar beet and sunflowers, as well as pastures, have been hit much harder than winter crops such as wheat and barley, according to Urs Schuler, head of crop insurance at Schweizer Hagel.

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Edited by Daniele Mariani.  Adapted from Italian by Julia Bassam/gw.