SAEFL and FOWG to form Federal Office for the Environment

Bern, 26.10.2005 - With effect from 1 January 2006, the Swiss Agency for the Environment, Forests and Landscape SAEFL is to be merged with large parts of the Federal Office for Water and Geology FOWG to form the newly named Federal Office for the Environment FOEN. The DETEC organisation ordinance was today amended to this effect by the Federal Council.

In this context, the term 'environment' is to be understood in a broad sense, covering not only forests, landscape and water but also biodiversity, air pollution control, noise abatement or natural hazards. The new name chosen for the office indicates that it is not only concerned with environmental protection, but equally with the use of natural resources based on the principle of sustainable management, and with protection against natural hazards.
At the end of August, a decision was taken by the Federal Council to concentrate the existing resources within DETEC in the environment, water and natural hazards sectors, and to that end to merge the SAEFL and large parts of the FOWG (natural hazards, water) with effect from 1 January 2006. Today, the duly revised DETEC organisation ordinance was adopted by the Federal Council. In this document, the goals and functions of the new office are defined, together with its name – the Federal Office for the Environment FOEN. The new Federal Office will be staffed by the equivalent of roughly 390 full-time posts and have its offices in Ittigen, Bern.
Also set out in the revised ordinance are the transfers of existing FOWG functions to other DETEC offices: the Swiss waterways and Rhine river navigation sections will become part of the Federal Office of Transport FOT, while the hydroelectric power use and dam safety sections are to be transferred to the Federal Office for Energy FOE.
In addition, the DDPS organisation ordinance has also been amended by the Federal Council: with effect from 1 January 2006 the FOWG functions in the field of geological mapping are to be transferred to the Federal Office of Topography (swisstopo) within the DDPS.


Publisher

Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications
https://www.uvek.admin.ch/uvek/en/home.html

Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications
https://www.uvek.admin.ch/uvek/en/home.html

Federal Office for Water and Geology
http://www.bwg.admin.ch

https://www.admin.ch/content/gov/en/start/documentation/media-releases.msg-id-571.html