Municipalities Association of municipalities calls for more support in the event of natural disasters

The new President of the Swiss Association of Communes, Green Councillor of States Mathias Zopfi, has called on the federal government and cantons to provide more support for communal politicians in the event of natural disasters. Municipalities are particularly affected by climate change, he said.

In his new role as head of the Association of Communes (SGV), he therefore wants to place greater emphasis on climate policy, Zopfi said in an interview with CH Media published on Wednesday.

The Glarus Councillor of States said that the landslides in Schwanden GL last year, for example, showed just how much of a challenge local politicians face when natural disasters occur. The local councillor and craftsman responsible, Markus Marti (SVP), had hardly been able to get any work done since then. As a municipal councillor, he was working at full capacity at times, although a 30 percent workload was planned for the office. "The federal and cantonal governments need to do even more to support these people," said the SGV President.

Maintaining personal responsibility

However, the municipalities should not be patronized, but rather empowered to solve their tasks themselves, he said. On the other hand, municipalities should assume their responsibility "and not push tasks upwards at the first headwind".

The 40-year-old Glarner took over the presidency of the association in July. Previously, Hannes Germann, a member of the SVP Council of States from Schaffhausen, headed the association for 16 years. The Green politician said that the municipal association would not move to the left as a result of the change. The board functions like a municipal council and has representatives from all parties. The association wants to represent the "entire breadth of our municipalities", said Zopfi.