Switzerland

The Swiss climate law is mainly defined by two key legislations: the CO₂ Act and the CO₂ Ordinance. The former provides the legal framework, the policy instruments and the key objectives, and the latter provides legal guidance for the implementation of the CO2 Act.  

After the Swiss population refused its revision that would have allowed the country to reach its target of reducing GHG emissions to 50% of 1990 levels by 2030 in the June 2021 referendum, the CO₂ Act exists only in a crippled form. A new version is currently under parliamentary review and is due for the end of 2024. It would enable the legal tools for Swiss climate policy until 2030 and would enshrine CDR in Swiss law. At the same time, the CO₂ Ordinance, a complement to the CO₂ Act, does not enshrine CDR use in Swiss law explicitly, but does recognise certain forms of CDR as eligible for Swiss emission reduction and sequestration credits as part of a related program.  

On 18 June 2023, the Climate and Innovation Act enshrined the objective to reach net GHG neutrality, defined as a balance between emissions and removals to compensate for residual emissions, by 2050. After 2050, removals should be higher than GHG emissions, thus creating a net negative target.

The Agreement with Managers of Waste Treatment Installations provides another legal basis for CDR. Effectively, it creates a legal obligation for operators of waste treatment installations to put at least one CO2 capture plant into operation by 2030, with a minimum capacity of 100,000 tons of CO₂/year. Since a share of the incinerated waste is of biogenic origin, this incineration of is considered as creating negative emissions. The target of 100,000 tonnes of CO₂/year therefore applies both to CCS and CDR.   

The Forest Policy 2021-2024 and the Wood Resource Policy 2030 outline key policy measures to preserve Swiss forests and promote the use of wood, though neither quantify removal targets.   

Internationally, Switzerland has been very active in concluding bilateral agreements under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement, with 12 already signed. These agreements essentially allow emission reductions and removals taking place in a partner country to account for Swiss emission reductions and removals. Furthermore, Switzerland has also signed declarations of intent to bilaterally collaborate on CDR and CCS with Iceland and the Netherlands, and it has approached Norway as well. Finally, in November 2023, Switzerland decided to ratify the amendment to Article 6 of the London Protocol, which allows and regulates the storage of CO₂ in geological formations under the seabed.