Government slammed over biodiversity failures
Environmental groups have accused the government of dragging its feet over the implementation of an international accord on biodiversity.
The Swiss branch of WWF and the Association for the Protection of Birds filed a complaint at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg.
The groups said the government had failed to put into practice measures to protect endangered species and habitats as part of a 1989 international convention.
They said the government refused to increase international cooperation and left it to the country's 26 cantonal authorities to take action.
One in two of Switzerland's 40,000 animal and plant species is in danger, according to environmentalists.
The complaint coincides with the opening on Monday of a two-week international conference in Germany to tackle the loss of the world's biodiversity.
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