Future operation of the Au shooting range in Embrach under dispute

On 1 April, the Directorate of Construction of the Canton of Zurich announced that it will not be closing the Au hunting shooting range in Embrach at the end of 2019, but instead intends to operate it for a further five years.

It comes as little surprise that the Directorate of Construction’s statement does not place the bad news front and centre. Instead, it holds out the prospect of remediation work beginning next winter and highlights the supposedly great benefits of hunting for flora, fauna, and society. The statement from the Directorate of Construction and its intention to continue shooting in the protected wetlands over the next five years is yet another chapter in the inglorious disregard for environmental legislation in the Töss wetlands between Dättlikon and Freienstein.

The Directorate of Construction and the Office for Hunting and Fisheries have been sloppy and have gambled recklessly over the past twelve years, planning a massive replacement facility in Bülach while letting time slip by — all at the expense of the environment and taxpayers. Director of Construction Kägi and Office Director Philipp have long been toying with the idea of muddling on in Embrach. It is therefore to be expected that 2024 will not bring an end to the shooting either, and that this declaration of intent, like the many before it, is not worth the paper it is written on.

The Directorate of Construction promises that shooting operations will be reduced by 60 to 70 per cent — from around 400,000 shots to 140,000 shots per year. Clay pigeon shooting is to be discontinued and bullet traps are to be installed. This would certainly be welcome and has been called for by the Pro Töss-Auen association for ten years. But what can be made of promises from the Directorate of Construction under State Councillor Kägi? In our experience: nothing.

• Despite assurances to the contrary, pollutant-laden clay pigeons (containing BTEX) and lead ammunition continue to this day to be deposited across vast areas and in enormous quantities within the protected zone and in the Töss river.

• The association Pro Töss-Auen was prevented from conducting chemical analyses of clay pigeon deliveries because Mr. Philipp allegedly had not been informed in time by the operators. Yet Mr. Philipp himself sits on the operations board of the facility.

• The promised working group has been invited to a single meeting since it was convened in June 2015.

• Shooting activity has actually increased in recent years because the operator of the hunting shooting range — which includes the Office for Fisheries and Hunting — wants to turn a profit.

• The planned closure of the facility is being postponed for the second time already.

All of this was only possible because the parties represented in the cantonal council, the major environmental organizations, and the entire cantonal government looked the other way for twelve years, despite knowing better.

In August 2018, the association Pro Töss-Auen filed a supervisory complaint each against the host municipality of Embrach and the Zurich Directorate of Construction, on the grounds of tolerating hazardous waste deposits on their land. Against the Directorate of Construction in its capacity as co-operator of the Au hunting shooting range, the association also filed a criminal complaint. The supervisory complaint against the municipality of Embrach was referred by the District Council of Bülach to the Directorate of Construction for handling, via presidential proceedings. This gives rise to the paradoxical situation in which the Directorate of Construction must answer for tolerating hazardous waste deposits on its own land while simultaneously adjudicating over the municipality of Embrach for the same offence (separation of powers?).

On August 30, 2018, the legal department of the State Chancellery requested the Building Directorate to respond to the complaint within 30 days. The Building Directorate allowed this deadline to pass due to an internal scheduling error — so explained Cantonal Councillor and Building Director Kägi, who in the same letter requested an extension until November 30, 2018. Once this was granted, the Building Directorate requested a further extension until January 31, 2019, and simultaneously demanded a stay of the complaint proceedings, citing a pending case in Bülach. Even in this submission, it was evident that the Building Director and the head of the Hunting and Fisheries Division were counting on continued operations at the Töss floodplains. Our criminal complaint against the Building Directorate as a co-operator of the Au hunting shooting range was transferred to State Prosecutor's Office II, which is responsible for special investigations. Despite ongoing proceedings, the Building Directorate is creating facts on the ground and resolving to continue operations at the hunting shooting range.

The association pro Töss-Auen is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year. Up against the overwhelming power of the Building Directorate, we have fought to have environmental law upheld in the Töss floodplains. Our success has been modest, even though we have not only the law but also reason on our side. Our association is now counting on the new, somewhat greener and impartial cantonal council and demands the immediate cessation of clay pigeon shooting, the installation of bullet traps for the remainder of the current shooting season, and the permanent closure of the Au hunting shooting range in November 2019.