Di, Jun 6th 2023
(Keystone SDA) After pushing through the solar offensive, Parliament also wants a wind energy offensive: Advanced wind power projects should be implemented as quickly as possible.
The Federal Council cleared up the last changes in the corresponding bill this week. There was resistance to the wind power offensive in parliament only from the Swiss People’s Party (SVP).
“The Windexpress is dubious, in some cantons the people no longer have anything to say about wind projects,” asserted Christian Imark. He added that he is certain the political whack-a-mole exercise will end in a referendum with a probability bordering on certainty. The other parties see it differently.
The tenor is that wind energy project could make a valuable contribution to the power supply, especially in the winter months. Projects should not have to wait more than twenty years for approval. It needs acceleration.
However, Parliament wants to retain the powers of the local communities and cantons in the approval process. The Council of States had decided on corresponding changes, and the National Council now followed him with 136 to 53 votes. Matthias Samuel Jauslin (Free Democratic Party) stated that wind energy does not have the same acceptance among the population as other renewable energies.
“It is important to proceed with a sense of proportion and care,” Jauslin said. The solution of the Council of States is “good and can be implemented in practice,” he added.
Specifically, the accelerated procedures should only be used if the municipalities have already approved the facility as part of the utilization planning. An exception to this should be cantons which, prior to the entry into force of the Federal Acceleration Act, shifted the competence for usage planning for wind energy projects to the cantonal level.
It’s about finding a good balance between accelerating projects and respecting democratic processes, said Commission spokeswoman Priska Widmer-Felder (Center Party). The Federal Council also agrees with the proposal.
Energy Minister Albert Rösti pointed out to the Council of States last week that the risk of a power shortage cannot be ruled out in the coming years. Among other things, more wind farms are needed to boost electricity production in winter. But all of this had to happen “without severely infringing on the usual right to have a say.”
The federal law on accelerating the approval process for wind turbines is one of several projects aimed at expanding domestic energies. The accelerated procedure is to be used for wind energy projects in the national interest until an additional output of 600 megawatts has been installed.
The canton will now be responsible for the building permit for these projects. In addition, the legal remedies against this decision will be restricted: it should only be possible to appeal to the highest cantonal court. A further appeal to the Federal Supreme Court is only permitted to clarify legal issues of fundamental importance.
Energy Mister Rösti recently said that six projects across Switzerland could benefit from the proposal. These had a total of 39 wind turbines and would be accelerated by two to three years thanks to the template. The projects could supply 250 gigawatt hours of electricity annually. They are currently in the approval process.
The bill originally came from the Environment, Spatial Planning and Energy Commission of the National Council. The organization justified their initiative by saying that in the winter months Switzerland is largely dependent on electricity imports from other European countries. Switzerland must become more independent.
After the consultation in the National Council, the organization Freie Landschaft Schweiz announced that it was considering holding a referendum. The constitution is violated by the intervention in the canton’s sovereignty in spatial planning. Against this, Parliament has now adapted the bill.
For now, everything is ready for the final votes.
Dieser Artikel wurde mit Genehmigung von Keystone SDA nachgedruckt.
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