Switzerland Will Keep İt's Nuclear Power Plants For A Longer Period Of Time

Switzerland citizens voted in a referendum and have rejected the proposal to introduce a strict timetable for shutting down nuclear power.

A projection for SRF public television showed the initiative failing by 55 percent to 45 percent. A majority of Swiss states voted against the initiative.

The plan, backed by the Green Party, was to close three of Switzerland's five nuclear plants, that are generating 40 percent of Switzerlands electricity, next year, with the last shutting in 2029.

President of the Green Party Regula Rytz, welcomed Sunday's result and said, "The high number of yes votes confirmed that citizens wanted to opt out of nuclear power in the long run."

Swiss government have decided to move the country towards renewable energy by 2050, after Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan.

Environmentalists asked for two nuclear reactors to shut down immediately, by stating that no nuclear plants should be operated longer than 45 years. After business leaders and government said, shutting dwon the reactors immediately will lead to power shortages and raise reliance to fossil fuels.

Even though Swiss are worried about the safety of the nuclear plants, fear of blackouts proved stronger.

Swiss voters regularly follow the advice of their government and of business leaders, the vote to hang on to nuclear power was no exception.

It said nuclear plants should continue to operate as long as they are deemed safe, but did not set a precise timetable. Switzerland will move towards renewable energy and will shut down the reliance on nuclear power of the country. - İstanbul