Record heat and drought test Switzerland’s climate preparedness

Rainfall reached only 54% of normal as Switzerland endured its hottest and driest April to July period on record since 1901. The figures have moved climate adaptation from long range planning into immediate decisions about farms, forests, public health and water use.

MeteoSwiss recorded a national average temperature 2.7°C above the 1991 to 2020 average. The Jura received only 45% of normal rainfall, while the Swiss Plateau received 47%. In Airolo, precipitation from April 1 to August 24 totalled 341 millimetres, against an average of 775 millimetres. Record deficits appeared at 139 of 408 monitoring stations.

Lakes and the Rhine fell well below their usual levels. Alpine melt provided some relief in the mountains, although warmer water created another risk. The Aare in Bern reached 24.82°C on July 14, exceeding the previous high of 24.12°C recorded in 2022. Low flows allow rivers to heat faster, placing aquatic species under pressure.

The Federal Council responded with sector specific finance. It approved CHF 54 million in interest-free loans for farms and proposed CHF 17.5 million for forest adaptation in 2027. Parliament will examine the response during its autumn session.

Potato and sugar beet output has fallen by 20% to 25%, while July livestock slaughterings doubled. The drought has tightened the finances of farms already operating on narrow margins and with limited economies of scale.

Christian Hofer, head of the Federal Office for Agriculture, cited higher feed costs, additional field work and lower yields. Feed supplies are scarce in Switzerland and abroad. Some farmers have had to slaughter livestock because they cannot secure enough feed, adding pressure to meat prices.

The government’s CHF 54 million package will come as interest free loans rather than grants. The loans can protect liquidity for farms facing immediate losses, yet they must be repaid. Environment Minister Albert Rösti said some holdings might still fail for economic reasons, noting that the number of Swiss farms has declined every year regardless of weather conditions.

Swiss farms are generally small by European standards. Mountainous terrain, fragmented ownership and high labour, machinery and building costs make production expensive. Subsidies preserve agriculture in difficult regions, while also supporting a structure that can struggle to absorb a bad season.

The policy choice now reaches beyond relief. Crop varieties, irrigation, soil management, livestock numbers and insurance arrangements will determine how much risk farmers carry when hot, dry summers become more frequent.

Nine in ten surveyed residents want cooling in public buildings. The poll by 20 Minuten and Tamedia shows that voters broadly accept stronger protection from heat, particularly where workplaces, hospitals, schools and care homes are involved.

Among 12,780 respondents, 91% supported air conditioning in public buildings. The Unia trade union’s proposal to suspend construction work when temperatures reach 33°C won 81% support, including 47% who said yes outright and 34% who leaned towards approval. Support was higher among women and lower income respondents.

The boundary becomes less clear in schools. Only 51% supported cancelling lessons when classrooms reach 26°C, while 47% opposed the measure. Women backed it by 57%, compared with 44% of men. Overall, 67% favoured wider air conditioning, and 69% supported relaxing cantonal planning rules for split units. Yet 67% opposed subsidies for air conditioning in private homes.

The results reveal a practical demand for protection alongside resistance to shifting all costs onto taxpayers. Cooling also creates an energy challenge for a country whose buildings and electricity planning have traditionally focused on winter. Shading, ventilation, tree cover and building insulation will influence whether adaptation reduces heat exposure without simply increasing power demand.

Only eight of Switzerland’s 26 cantons have heat action plans that meet World Health Organization standards. That uneven coverage is central to the debate over whether the country’s climate preparedness matches the speed of environmental change.

Cantons in French speaking Switzerland and Ticino introduced heat plans after the 2003 heatwave caused roughly 1,000 more deaths than expected. Research comparing eight Swiss cities found that heat related mortality risk fell noticeably in cities with such plans, including Geneva. In cities without them, the relationship between high temperatures and mortality did not change after 2003.

Geneva’s system includes daily welfare checks on registered vulnerable residents during heatwaves, along with free cinema and swimming pool tickets for older people. Other parts of Switzerland offer less consistent support. Responsibilities remain divided among the Confederation, cantons and municipalities, making nationwide standards difficult to impose.

Switzerland has invested heavily in natural hazard protection. Around CHF 2.9 billion a year, equal to about 0.6% of GDP, goes towards adaptation to hazards, and maps cover more than 90% of settled areas. Those systems have helped with floods, landslides and avalanches. Heat and drought demand a different network of public health measures, water planning and urban design, areas where implementation remains patchier.

The Federal Council will decide by October whether Switzerland needs further measures for heat and drought. Its review will cover public health, animal welfare, nationwide heat maps and additional agricultural support. Parliament is also expected to hold an extraordinary debate during the autumn session.

Rösti has rejected calls for a state of emergency and argued that existing law is sufficient. He has also said cantons and municipalities must carry much of the responsibility, while the federal government could support building improvements that protect people from extreme heat. The Greens have called for a new state secretariat for climate protection, and the Socialists, Greens and Green Liberals want a wider parliamentary examination.

The summer’s data will shape that argument. Researchers at MeteoSwiss and ETH Zurich have observed more hot, dry weather since 2003 and expect such summers to become more frequent and intense. Emergency loans can help farms survive a cash flow crisis. Forest funding can support species selection and long term resilience. Neither measure establishes national heat standards or guarantees water security.

Switzerland already has expertise in monitoring hazards and protecting settlements. The next test will involve coordination, predictable funding and decisions taken before the next drought reaches the fields, rivers and homes.