Zurich voters set net-zero carbon deadline for 2050

Zurich voters don't want net zero until 2050 Keystone-SDA

Canton Zurich has been given a 2050 carbon neutral deadline by voters - striking down a previously stated goal of 2040.

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Some 59.3% of canton Zurich residents voted against the Energy Act’s net-zero target for 2040. Voter turnout was 51.3%.

With this result, the canton is matching the federal government’s pace towards climate neutrality.

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According to the canton’s construction director Martin Neukom, the net-zero target for 2040 was probably not supported by a majority because abstract targets are more difficult to communicate than concrete measures. “When it came to anchoring the phase-out of fossil fuel heating in the Energy Act, the voters said yes with 62%,” he said.

To date, the Zurich Energy Act has not specified a year to reach net-zero. Two years’ ago, voters merely instructed politicians to reduce greenhouse gases in order to curb global warming.

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However, a majority of the cantonal council decided to write a year into the law after all – namely 2040. The cities of Zurich and Winterthur have also set themselves this target.

“North Korean conditions”

This was too fast for the Swiss People’s Party, which is why it launched a referendum. The party fears “North Korean conditions” and an excessive ban culture with a net-zero target for 2040.

The cantonal government itself also argued in favour of aligning the pace with the federal government and thus writing 2050 into law.

Translated from German with DeepL/mga

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