Outdoor fires have been banned in parts of southern Switzerland as several weeks of drought have left the ground and undergrowth tinder-dry.
This content was published on
1 minute
swissinfo.ch and agencies
The Environment Office issued a warning on Monday about the dangers of fires in general, and called for people to take care even in areas where the local authorities have not issued specific instructions.
Barbecues are popular among the Swiss and specially equipped outdoor grill areas are to be found in many forests.
The Swiss weather service, Meteo Swiss, says that parts of cantons Valais and Graubünden have had less than 20 per cent of their normal rainfall in the last two months, while other areas further north and west have received only about one third.
The southern canton of Ticino has banned all outdoor fires, while its neighbour Graubünden has banned them in and near woods.The authorities in Valais say they, too, face a strong fire risk in some parts.
The Environment Office says that where the risk is highest, it will only be dispelled by heavy rainstorms. Brief showers or thunderstorms will not be enough.
The office adds that water levels are low, particularly in the lakes of western Switzerland and in some of the larger rivers, like the Aare which flows through the Swiss capital, Bern. In many places ground water levels are also low.
On April 3 the water level in Lake Biel was ten centimetres lower than the previous record for the same day and was 39 centimetres lower than the long-term average for April.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Swiss still sweltering
This content was published on
A new record for the year of 34.8 degrees was set in Basel, the Swiss Metrological Office said. The office has issued a warning of forest fires in the southern canton of Valais, where there has been a persistent drought. The Health Office is reminding people to drink enough, especially water, and to keep their…
This content was published on
A map based on data collected between 1980 and 2006 by the federal agricultural research station Agroscope demonstrates that potentially drought-susceptible regions extend beyond the country’s traditionally dry areas. Research showed that over the 25-year span certain regions of the Rhine valley, eastern and central Switzerland and the Jura have been affected by new drought.…
This content was published on
On Saturday it was only 4.95 metres deep, the shallowest it has been since the hot summer of 2003. Barges are able to load only between a quarter and a third of their normal cargo, otherwise they would be too low in the water, Peter Sauter of the Swiss Rhine Ports told the Swiss news…
This content was published on
Climatologist Heinz Wanner says the past few years are among the warmest since the first measurements were taken in 1860, and he tells swissinfo.ch that “manmade greenhouse gases are the cause”. The emeritus professor at Bern University said the emissions have led to a rise of the global mean temperature. That partly justifies how November…
This content was published on
The findings give fascinating new context to centuries of European history. Results indicate, for example, that wet and warm summers facilitated Roman and medieval prosperity, and that the demise of the Western Roman Empire coincided with a period of increased climate variability. The wide tranche of temperature and precipitation data is also useful in assessing…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.