Medienmitteilung

Land use statistics: New results for whole of Switzerland Settlements continue to grow, but at a slower pace

25.11.2021 - Switzerland's settlement and urban areas have expanded by a further 181 km2 in the last ten years, which is twice the area of Lake Zurich. Compared with previous decades, however, settlement growth has slowed down slightly. Forests have also expanded, but only in the mountains. Like settlements, they have grown primarily at the expense of agricultural area. In the high mountain regions, glaciers have continued to shrink unabatedly. These are the latest findings from the land use statistics of the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).

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