Switzerland – The cleanest country in Europe

For the past 2 years, I’ve been to quite some European cities. During my Europe travel 2010 and Europe travel MKII in 2011, I’ve visited London, Paris, Amsterdam, Venice, Florence, Rome, Barcelona, Lucerne, Interlaken, Berlin, Copenhagen and Brussel, to name a few. Indisputable, they are all fabulous travel destinations with too many magnificent tourist attraction to explore about. But when come to quality environmentally, not all of them have the kind of air and water quality we would expect for.

Among those cities and countries that I have visited so far in Europe or EU countries, Switzerland is the country that I found to have the best air and water quality. It is also the cleanest country that I exprienced in Europe. All cities of Switzerland that I visited including Lucerne, Basel, Bern and Interlaken, are so clean that one could even drink water directly from its rivers!

Switzerland has one of the best environmental records among nations in the developed world. It is heavily active in recycling and anti-littering regulations and is one of the top recyclers in the world, with 66% to 96% of recyclable materials being recycled. Switzerland also has internationally the most efficient system to recycle old newspapers and cardboard materials.

I realised this when I first arrived at Lucerne of Switzerland. Lucerne is a city in the centre of Switzerland which was built around the Reuss River and the Lucerne Lake. We had a real shock immediately after looking down to the Reuss River in front of our hotel room. Its is so clear without a hint of rubbish and I could clearly see through to the bottom of it! I picked up my Nikon D7000 and started to record this clip to show you what I meant. Click the video below to get a shock for yourself!

Now you know why I said earlier that one can actually drink water from the river. 🙂 According to the locals, tap water in anywhere of Switzerland is perfectly safe to drink, unless few public fountains which would otherwise be noted. The best part is the water tastes so fresh and sweet, just like drinking the natural mineral water! Haha… I love it so much.

Also the air is so refreshing to breathe in Switzerland that made me stop smoking and started enjoying fresh air that we can’t have it in most other developed countries in Europe. Switzerland is definitely the best country to retire and enjoy the best environment. 🙂 – Travel Feeder, your ultimate photo travel guide to Europe

About The Author

Cecil Lee

The author is an avid traveler and photography hobbyist who loves to share with others his travel and photo-taking experience in many popular tourist destinations around Europe, Asia and Australasia. Read the exciting stories with many photos captured on his journeys.