ZURICH (Reuters) – Voters in Switzerland on Sunday rejected a proposal to make authorities do more to protect natural habitats from pollution and development, preliminary results of a referendum showed.
The so-called “biodiversity initiative”, which the government and parliament had already rebuffed, envisaged changing the law to set aside more land for conservation beyond areas that are already protected in the Alpine republic.
The initiative has been closely watched by conservationists outside the country at a time when concerns over global biodiversity loss are growing.
In one of Switzerland’s traditional exercises of direct democracy, well over 60% of voters rejected the plan, according to a projected result published by national broadcaster SRF.
The proposal also intended to increase protections for endangered ecosystems in a country renowned for its sparkling lakes and snow-capped mountains.
By mid-afternoon, the initiative had been rejected by too many cantons to pass, an official partial tally showed.
The Swiss Green party expressed disappointment at the results and said more needed to be done to protect the environment, warning that a third of all species and half of all habitats in Switzerland are under threat.
“This problem will remain regardless of the outcome of the vote,” the party said in a statement.
To opponents, which included the country’s main farming lobby, the initiative was too extreme, and posed risks to business development. Switzerland’s current laws already take into account conservation needs, they said.
Initial support in opinion polls for the biodiversity scheme had in recent weeks given way to greater scepticism as opponents mobilised arguments against it.
Earlier this year, Europe’s top human rights court ruled that Switzerland was not doing enough to arrest the impact of climate change. The Swiss government denies this.
(Reporting by Dave Graham; Editing by Ros Russell)
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