Switzerland today

Dear Swiss Abroad,

What are your views on nuclear power? Essential for energy security or a disaster waiting to happen?

Switzerland decommissioned the Mühleberg nuclear plant in canton Bern in 2019. But dismantling and cleaning up is no easy task. It could take three times longer than constructing it!

This content was published on October 16, 2023 - 18:00

2 minutes

I cover food and agribusiness and have a special interest in sustainable supply chains, food safety and quality, as well emerging players and trends in the food industry. A background in forestry and conservation biology led me down the path of environmental advocacy. Journalism and Switzerland made me a neutral observer who holds companies accountable for their actions.

nuclear cleanup — © Keystone / Peter Klaunzer

Radioactive farewell: A 15-year clean up job at Mühleberg

The Mühleberg nuclear plant took five years to build, from 1967 to 1972. Dismantling will take three times as long. It will involve no fewer than 300 people, or as many as when the power station was still in operation.

The cleanup crew had a few surprises in store. Specialists found more asbestos than expected. Lead-containing dyes scattered throughout the plant also complicated the cleanup work.

ticket machine — © Keystone / Gaetan Bally

Public transport: Government pressured companies to hike fares

Public transport companies, which are supposed to set their own fares, faced government pressure to increase fares in 2024External link, according to a confidential document. Fares will rise by an average of 3.7% on December 10, the first increase since 2016.

The poor state of federal finances is to blame. The Federal Council decided at the start of the year to cut spending on regional public transport.

Mammoth find: Tusk of mammoth that lived more than 25,000 years ago found

A mammoth tusk has been discovered in the gravel pit at Wynau. The animal lived more than 25,000 years agoExternal link in the far north-east of what is now the canton of Bern. While working with a digger this summer, two workers came across fragments of a mammoth tusk measuring around 50 centimetres long and 14 centimetres in diameter.

The tusk probably belonged to an adult male that had died in the steppe landscape in front of the Rhone glacier. It was then washed away by a stream and deposited at the site where it was found. The fragments were protected for thousands of years under layers of sand and gravel.

Wolf-livestock conflict: Wolves blamed for attack on alpacas in canton Glarus

The mammoths may be long gone, but another beast strikes fear among the populace today, especially farmers. On Sunday night, 20 alpacas were attacked in the Sernftal near Elm in the canton of Glarus. Seven animals were killed and two others were injured. The result of the DNA analysis is still pending, but the local authorities blame a wolf pack External linkthat killed a calf on a Glarus Alp at the end of August.

At the beginning of September, another wolf pack spotted in the canton killed nine sheep on Mürtschenalp.