Canton of Lucerne votes on expansion of renewables
The canton of Lucerne wants to promote the expansion of renewable energies. To this end, the planning and building law is to be amended. The electorate will decide on this amendment on 24 November.
On 24 November, voters will decide on a bill to amend the Planning and Building Act (PBG). The canton of Lucerne explains in a press release that the amendment to the PBG is intended to accelerate the expansion of renewable energies. Various measures from the planning report on climate and energy policy, which was approved by parliament in 2022, would require these amendments to the PBG. For example, in future, charging stations for electric cars should be planned directly when building car parks. The SVP parliamentary group rejected these changes as they believe that the production of renewable electricity should be voluntary and “not enforced by regulations”. The Centre, FDP, SP, Green and GLP parliamentary groups, on the other hand, approved the government council’s proposal. The cantonal council also voted in favour of the amendments to the PBG by 83 votes to 27. The referendum on 24 November will now take place because a committee has launched a referendum.
The cantonal government recommends that voters approve the amendments. “We are still investing too much money in importing fossil fuels from abroad. By investing in our domestic renewable energies, we are freeing ourselves from our dependence on foreign countries and generating even more added value here at home,” Fabian Peter, the cantonal councillor responsible for the legislative amendment, is quoted as saying in the press release.