Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch), The Federal Council yesterday rejected calls to extend the carbon tax to gasoline and diesel fuel, but said it would commit to a 20 percent reduction of greenhouse gases over 1990 levels by the year 2020, in line with the European Union. The decision is part of the council’s recommendations to Parliament to revise Swiss energy laws.
Heating fuel in Switzerland is already subject to a carbon tax, and if Parliament approves the cabinet’s proposal, up to CHF200 million of this tax will be used to reduce emissions in the building sector.
Other elements of the proposed revision include tightening new cars’ carbon emissions, also in line with EU standards, an extension of the Swiss carbon trading system and its eventual integration into a Europe-wide system. In addition, importers of fuel will have to offset carbon emissions either in Switzerland or abroad.
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News story, GenevaLunch, 7 May 2009.
Filed under: Politics
Tags: carbon emissions, CO2, EU, European Union, Federal Council, Politics, Swiss law