Basel Rejects Plastic Ban; UniBas To Reduce Travel CO2; Stork Spring Starts; SBB Derailment Near Hauptbanhof

News For 19 February 2019

Last November, the Basel Grand Council Green Party referred a motion for consideration for an outright ban on disposable plastic within the city.  The motion intended for cantonal laws and measures to be implemented by 2022.  In a statement issued Friday, Basel Stadt rejected the motion despite similar mandates already being in effect at the federal level within Switzerland.  Citing a piecemeal, business friendly approach, the government said the rejection does not diminish its commitment to reducing plastic waste, with on-going efforts to replace plastic with reusable materials.

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The University of Basel is considering a proposal that students should take the train rather than fly for short-haul academic trips, as a way of cutting down on CO2 emissions.  The proposal is focused on the “1,000-kilometer principle” discussed at a recent University of Basel Senate meeting and supported by local students. Under the proposal, which is the first of its kind in Switzerland, students would take the train rather than an airplane for university-organised trips under 1,000 kilometers, such as to Brussels or London, if there are “adequate train and travel links”. However, this would not affect professors’ research travel. The university agreed with the students that more should be done regarding the issue of reducing flying.

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For some Basel residents, spring has already arrived. On Monday, the Basel Zoo announced that Lenny, the star stork of the venue, has returned from his winter migration to Spain. Apparently, storks return to the same nests year after year, and this time was no different for Lenny, having found his unoccupied after his early return. Zoo officials are hopeful that Lenny's she-stork mate will also return after having sired three baby storks together last year.

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On Sunday evening shortly before 9:00PM, an ICE Deutsche Bahn train with 240 passengers on board came to a standstill in front of the Gellert Tunnel because of a derailed carriage. The carriage was torn apart when crossing a turnout. While the locomotive was driving in the right direction in the direction of travel, the rest of the train moved to another track. At the entrance to the tunnel, the train came to a halt a few meters in before a wall separating both tracks. The travelers were able to leave the train largely unhurt. The SBB did not reveal much on the incident except that the Swiss Safety Investigation Board (SUST) is now involved.