Switzerland stays out of Copernicus, losing influence and contracts

Switzerland will not join Copernicus, the European Union’s Earth observation programme, SRF reported. The Federal Council reaffirmed its decision in June despite opposition from Parliament.

Copernicus uses around a dozen satellites to measure the Earth almost in real time. The data covers land and sea surfaces and the atmosphere, helping assess soil and forest dryness, changes in glaciers and coastlines, and particulate pollution in the air.

The Federal Council cited Switzerland’s strained finances. Membership is estimated to cost around 48 million Swiss francs a year. Unlike all EU member states, as well as Norway, Iceland and the United Kingdom, Switzerland is not part of the programme.

Switzerland can still use most Copernicus raw data free of charge and does so, including for its national drought monitoring. The satellites photograph the Earth’s surface every five days and measure, among other things, how strongly plants reflect invisible infrared light. This can show how severely forests are affected by drought before their leaves visibly change.

Copernicus data is also used in Switzerland to monitor natural hazards, including the early detection of possible landslides.

As a non-member, Switzerland has no say in the programme’s development, including the setting of measurement methods and standards. It cannot decide which data will be collected in future or how specific services will be designed. Membership could allow Switzerland to push for data better suited to natural hazards in the Alpine region, such as glacier monitoring and the observation of mountain movements.

The decision also has economic consequences. Copernicus awards contracts for satellite technology and for applications developed from satellite data. Swiss companies and research institutions are generally not allowed to participate in these tenders. A study commissioned by the federal government estimates that Switzerland loses contracts worth around 35 million Swiss francs each year, including potential work for software companies and specialist firms developing new products from the data.

The Federal Council rejected participation in the 2028 to 2034 programme period and is expected to review the issue again in 2032. Parliament could still influence the decision. A motion calling on the Federal Council to quickly open negotiations on Swiss participation is pending in the Council of States after the National Council approved it in June.