Image copyright Reuters Image caption Thirty-eight per cent of Switzerland's energy currently comes from nuclear power

Swiss voters will decide on Sunday whether to phase out nuclear power.

Although Switzerland's government already has a plan to decommission the country's five nuclear plants "at the end of their natural lives", opponents of nuclear power claim the strategy is too vague, and may allow the plants to keep operating indefinitely.

The proposal before voters, brought by the Green party, calls for nuclear plants to be closed after a maximum 45 years in operation, and for a ban on construction of any new plants.

This would mean that three of the five plants would have to shut next year, the fourth in 2024 and the last in 2029.

The 2011 accident at Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant was, for many Swiss voters, the deciding factor in a relationship with nuclear power that has always been uneasy.

In the wake of Fukushima, the Swiss government announced the plan to gradually phase out nuclear power, once the plants were no longer viable on the advice of the businesses which run them and the Swiss nuclear watchdog.

The announcement coincided with neighbouring Germany's decision to abandon nuclear power too, but did not go as far, in that the German government set fixed dates for decommissioning.

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Opponents of nuclear power argue it is wrong to allow aging plants to keep operating indefinitely

It is the perceived vagueness over dates, and concerns over safety, which lie behind the current vote on a faster phase-out.

'Catastrophic'

Switzerland is a densely populated country, none of its five plants is more than 70km (43 miles) from urban centres and the government issues iodine tablets to communities within a certain radius, to be taken in case of a release of radioactive material.

Due to public concern, no new nuclear power stations have been built in Switzerland since 1984.

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The referendum is the latest in a series to be held in Switzerland

The Beznau 1 plant is the world's oldest, dating back to 1969, while Muhleberg is close enough to the Swiss capital Berne for all its citizens to have iodine tablets in their bathroom cabinets. It came on stream in 1971.

For campaigners like Nils Epprecht of the Swiss Energy Foundation, Switzerland is just not the right country for nuclear power. An accident would be "catastrophic", he argues, making large parts of the country uninhabitable.

Supporters of a quick phase-out of nuclear also say that Switzerland, already famous for strict environmental policies, ought to be providing Europe with a shining example of renewable energy, rather than relying on elderly nuclear reactors. More than 60% of Swiss power already comes from a renewable source - hydropower.

And, they argue, unless the government commits to a firm date for a nuclear phase-out, there will be no economic impetus to invest in renewables.

But Swiss business leaders, very influential on Switzerland's political scene, have their doubts.

Thirty-eight per cent of Switzerland's energy currently comes from nuclear power, and Hans Ulrich Bigler, member of parliament for the centre-right Radical Party, and director of the Swiss Association of Small and Medium Businesses, believes that without a clear solution on how to fill that gap, such a rapid exit from nuclear power would be the real catastrophe.

Image copyright EPA Image caption Swiss voters will decide whether to say 'yes please' or 'no thanks' to nuclear power

"Energy prices would rise," he claimed, "and we would have to import energy from France or Germany."

Imported French energy, Mr Bigler claims, would almost certainly be nuclear, while German terawatts would likely come from coal. Neither, he argues, would really achieve the environmental aims of those calling for an end to nuclear.

Latest opinion polls show the vote is likely to be very close, with many voters agonising over their desire to do what they think is right for the environment, and a reluctance to damage the Swiss economy, currently ranked as the world's most successful.</s>Swiss voters are casting ballots in a referendum led by environmental groups that would require the government to set a precise timetable to end Switzerland's production and use of nuclear energy.

Polls have suggested a close race despite objection. After the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan, the Swiss federal government adopted a gradualist approach toward transitioning the country toward renewable energy by 2050. It says nuclear plants should continue to operate as long as they are deemed safe.

The proposal being voted on would shutter by 2029 the last of Switzerland's five nuclear power plants that now generate 40 percent of the country's electricity.

Switzerland regularly holds referendums in its form of direct democracy, which allows voters in the country of about 8.2 million to set policy.</s>GENEVA — Like other countries after the 2011 Fukushima disaster, Switzerland pledged to abandon nuclear power in coming years. But anti-nuclear advocacy groups say the Swiss government's timetable isn't fast enough, and have pushed for a referendum this weekend that would hasten the planned exit.

Swiss voters cast ballots on Sunday on an initiative championed by environmentalists and nuclear foes that would, if passed, shutter by 2029 the last of Switzerland's five nuclear power plants that now generate 40 of the country's electricity.

Polls suggest a tight race on an issue that could put Switzerland on a similar track to one in Germany. The Germans have been aggressively ramping up transition to renewables like solar energy in time to be done with nuclear energy by 2022, a deadline also set after a tsunami ravaged Japan's Fukushima nuclear power facility five years ago.

As part of an energy plan that runs through 2050, the Swiss government has already agreed not to replace its existing nuclear plants, which can operate as long as they're deemed safe. The plants are to be closed progressively as their life spans expire, and the government says it needs time to switch to other sources such as wind, solar and biomass energy.

Switzerland regularly holds referendums as part of its particular form of direct democracy, which allows voters in the country of about 8.2 million to set policy on major issues — at times causing hassles for officials to carry out the public's will.

The two chambers of the Swiss legislature and the executive Federal Council have variously argued that the initiative, "for an orderly withdrawal from the nuclear energy program," would force Switzerland to import more electricity, such as from carbon-spewing coal-fired plants in Germany. Plus, early shutdowns could make the government — and thus taxpayers — liable to pay penalties to the nuclear plant operators.

But Ilias Panchard, secretary-general of a group whose French name translates as "Get Out of Nuclear," says Switzerland's nuclear power complex is dangerous, aging and beset by problems — with two of the five Swiss plants not operating at the moment for safety or technical reasons. His group insists now is the time to set a fixed timetable, before it's too late to move to a proper replacement.

"If we just wait until an accident or a problem with the plants, then we do not have the time, the energy to replace it. So the idea of the initiative, the referendum, is to say: in 2029 we will have no more nuclear energy in Switzerland," he said in an interview in Geneva overlooking the Alps.

The initiative would the limit the life span of nuclear plants to 45 years, and force the closure next year of three of the plants, Beznau 1 — which Panchard called the world's oldest operating nuclear plant, built in 1969 — as well as Beznau 2 and Muhleberg.

"Concretely, that means that in 2017, about one-third of the electricity generated by nuclear energy will be lacking. That amounts to the average annual electricity consumption of close to half of Swiss households," Burkhalter said, adding that renewables won't be able to make up the difference right away.</s>Swiss voters are deciding on Sunday whether to close the country’s five nuclear power plants after 45 years in operation. The outcome is too close to call, according to the latest opinion poll.

The Green Party initiative argues the safety of old reactors operating since the early 1970s can no longer be guaranteed. Instead, they are calling for more energy efficiency and renewable energy resources.

“An orderly phase out creates more safety and protects our country,” according to the campaign slogan of the initiative committee.

If approved, three plants would have to be shut down as early as next year and Switzerland would phase out nuclear energy production by 2029.

The proposal is backed by an alliance of leftwing parties, trade unions and environmental organisations.

Most of the Swiss nuclear reactors have unlimited operating licences, which are subject to approval by the regulator.

Opponents, including the main centrist and rightwing parties in parliament as well as the business community, have dismissed the proposal as risky and too hasty.

They say it creates more uncertainty, danger and chaos for electricity supplies in Switzerland, and argue the country would have to increase energy imports from abroad, notably from coal-fired power stations in Germany and nuclear reactors in France.

In the run-up to the November 27 vote, opponents warned that the proposed phase out could lead to blackouts and trigger considerable compensation claims from the operators of the power plants.

Switzerland has five nuclear power reactors, generating about 34.5% of its electricity. It uses nuclear energy to produce electricity, in research and medicine. Worldwide there are 447 nuclear power plants in 31 countries, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). An experimental power reactor at Lucens was written off in 1969 following a core melt. Two reactors, Beznau 1 and Leibstadt, are currently off grid due to repairs. The Mühleberg plant will be closed down in 2019 according to the power station operators. Plans to build two power plants were abandoned in the 1980s following anti-nuclear protests.

Following the nuclear disaster in Fukushima, the Swiss government in 2011 decided in principle to opt out of nuclear power production by 2034. In its energy policy, the government recommended decommissioning all nuclear reactors and to promote hydroelectric power, renewable energy and combined gas plants.

Last September, parliament approved an energy strategy, ending more than two years of debate. The programme foresees boosting renewable energy resources and outlaws the construction of nuclear power plants. However, it sets no deadline for the existing reactors to be shut down.

Unhappy with the Energy Strategy 2050, the rightwing Swiss People’s Party is challenging the law to a referendum, criticising planned government subsidies for renewable energy resources.

The latest opinion poll published last week found supporters just a few percentage points ahead of opponents of the initiative with 6% of respondents still undecided.

Based on the considerable drop in support among citizens over the preceding weeks, experts of the leading GfS Bern research and polling institute give an advantage to the opponents.

The vote needs a majority of cantons and the popular vote to win. It is believed that the results from six of the country’s 26 cantons could be a decisive factor, including Bern and Vaud.

Turnout on November 27 is expected to be above average, around 51%.
In a referendum, Switzerland rejects a proposal to abolish commercial nuclear power by 2029.