Swiss salt supply guaranteed until end of the century
The salt production of Switzerland is guaranteed to provide enough salt for the country until the end of this century, an analysis by the Schweizer Salinen AG has revealed. Part of these investigations also involved test drillings at new potential mining sites.
The salt production sites in the cantons of Aargau and Baselland that provide the salt for all of Switzerland are predicted to last until the end of this century, Schweizer Salinen AG informed on Tuesday.
However, it still remains unclear whether the supply can be provided at the current sites in Riburg (AG) and Schweizerhalle (BL), or if there needs to be an expansions to new sites. As part of an analysis, sound measurements and test drillings were done in Arisdorf (BL).
This area is one of the options for a new salt mining site, Salinen spokesperson Nicole Riethmüller stated on request. There are no concrete mining plans yet, neither also for any potential salt deposits in Liestal, she said.
New concessions of the existing salt works at Riburg and Schweizerhalle prompted the investigations, which became necessary in 2015. The administrative board therefore commissioned the Schweizer Salinen AG to secure the Swiss salt supply until the end of the century and to look into different options for the future. Various mining and production methods were evaluated and rated.
The Schweizer Salinen AG has 200 employees at its sites in Riburg, Schweizerhalle, and Bex (VD). Around 600,000 tons of salt are produced every year. The company is responsible for the Swiss supply of all salts through production, storage, and trade.
Police checks on the A2: 564 fines in three hours
The treasury could be in for a windfall of up to 141,000 after a three-hour traffic inspection on the A2 motorway netted 564 drivers who ignored a red light. A fine of 250 Swiss francs per driver applies for the offence.
The police caught the offenders while monitoring the traffic in the Breitel area from 3.30pm on Monday for around three hours. Prior to the inspection, they had observed for a considerable length of time that many drivers either did not pay attention to or plainly ignore a red light that blocks a traffic lane. This is a danger both for themselves and to other drivers. During the past few months, there had been several rear-impact crashes in heavy traffic due to careless driving at the end of the lane.
Large-scale wine smuggling uncovered: passenger wanted for unpaid fines
A large quantity of products including meat and wine has been discovered in a van during a traffic inspection by the cantonal police of Basel-Stadt. The police passed on the information about the haul to the border guards.
Along with the customs investigation team, they were able to secure about 990 litres of wine, more than 110 kg of meat, and 32 litres of cooking oil from the vehicle. They also discovered that the Portuguese co-driver is wanted in Switzerland for non-payment of fines.
The discovery was made during a patrol of Basel’s cantonal police on Thursday night. Officers noticed a small van with a trailer on the A3 motorway entering the Horburg tunnel. They pulled the vehicle over and discovered that it had been loaded with various items.
Additional help by the border guard corps
The police alerted the border guard patrol, which took the vehicle to the German border crossing at Basel-Freiburgerstrasse for further investigation. The driver and co-driver also underwent more thorough searches. During the inspection, it emerged that the co-driver, a 45-year-old Portuguese man, is wanted for arrest in Switzerland. A total of eight warrants, concerning unpaid fines of more than 5,000 francs, had been filed against him.
About 990 litres of wine and more than 110 kg of meat
When searching the small van, the border guards found several cardboard boxes containing plastic and glass bottles tht had been filled with wine. All in all, a total of 988,5 litres of red and white wine were discovered. Further cardboard boxes contained smoked meat and sausages – 111,2 kg in total.
Besides additional foodstuffs and plants, there were also 32 litres of cooking oil in the vehicle. Due to the large amount of smuggled wares, the customs investigation team was called in. Their investigation revealed that the smuggled goods originated in Portugal and had been brought to Switzerland via France. The van driver, a 52-year-old Portuguese man living in Switzerland, is facing fines and customs duties of several thousand francs.