Voters in the Swiss canton of Bern have rejected a proposal to require homeowners to install solar panels on their roofs, but have instead adopted an alternative proposal that, among other things, introduces mandatory solar panels on large public parking lots. The vote has been closely followed in the rest of Switzerland, as it could have an impact on similar national initiatives. This is reported by the Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger.
The canton of Bern is the second largest of Switzerland's 26 cantons and serves as the country's capital canton, as it contains the federal city of Bern. It has around one million inhabitants, of which around 485,000 were eligible to vote in Sunday's vote.
The result shows a clear rejection of the original solar initiative put forward by the Swiss Green Party in 2021. 72 percent of voters voted against the proposal, which would have required both new and existing buildings to install solar cells by 2040 at the latest, if their roofs or facades were suitable for it. The initiative included a gradual implementation, with solar cells initially only to be installed when the roofs were renovated.
In contrast, an alternative proposal was adopted with 66.6 percent of the votes. The proposal, supported by the parties Die Mitte, FDP, SVP and EDU as well as business and agricultural organizations, maintains a requirement for solar cells on newly built roofs, but limits the obligations for existing buildings to an information obligation in the event of roof renovations. A significant addition is that large public parking lots are now subject to solar cell requirements.
– In such a short time, so many solar power plants cannot be connected to the grid at all, says Francesco Rappa, CEO of the cantonal homeowners' association HEV and member of Die Mitte, who was also one of the political architects behind the alternative proposal.
The vote in Bern is seen as a test for an upcoming national referendum on solar power, as several other cantons have already introduced similar requirements. The result could therefore have consequences for how Switzerland regulates solar energy in construction in the future.
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