Construction of a footbridge in the Pfynwald VS floodplain area is not permitted
Published: Wednesday, Nov 20th 2024, 13:10
العودة إلى البث المباشر
The planned overpass over the Rhone in the Pfynwald forest as part of the work on the A9 highway between Sierre and Gampel (VS) is off the table. The Federal Supreme Court has dismissed the appeals of the canton of Valais and the municipality and burgher community of Salgesch.
The Pfynwald is listed in the Federal Inventory of Landscapes and Natural Monuments of National Importance (BLN). This pine forest is also a floodplain area of national importance, which is located in the Pfyn-Finges Regional Nature Park.
The planned location of the passerelle is a potential nesting site for the protected common sandpiper and little ringed plover. Both bird species are listed as critically endangered on the Red List of the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN).
Like the Federal Administrative Court as the lower court, the Federal Supreme Court came to the conclusion in a decision published on Wednesday that the planned, approximately 280-metre-long bridge was not necessary for the intended visitor guidance. This could be achieved by other means. Acceptance of the restrictions for visitors to protect the fauna and flora could also be promoted by expanding the existing bus services.
Possible increase in visitors
According to the Federal Supreme Court, it is not clear why roads, paths and footpaths can only be removed if a footbridge is built at the same time. Furthermore, it cannot be ruled out that the problem of impacts on the area could merely shift and even intensify in view of a possible increase in visitors.
The complainants argued that the footbridge was an indispensable part of the overall protection concept. Until now, a large proportion of visitors had reached the Pfynwald directly by car via the cantonal road. With the dismantling of the old cantonal road as part of the national road project, access to the Pfynwald for motorized private transport would be significantly restricted. (Judgments 1C_634/2022 and 1C_635/2022 of 4.10.2024)
©كيستون/إسدا
Arabic 
English 
German 
French 
Spanish