The aim of emergency preparedness is to protect the affected people and their livelihoods and to limit the effects of an event in which radiation is emitted or in which the emission of radiation cannot be excluded. The tasks of the authorities at a federal, cantonal, regional and municipal level as well as those of the operators of nuclear installations are regulated in the Emergency Preparedness Ordinance.

The aims of emergency preparedness in accordance with the Emergency Preparedness Ordinance are:

• to protect the population affected and their livelihoods;
• to care for the population affected over a limited period of time and provide them with bare necessities;
• to limit the consequences of an event.

Two zones are defined around each nuclear installation:

Zone 1 comprises an area in which in the event of a severe accident a danger to the population can result and protective actions are required immediately.

Zone 2 encompasses Zone 1 and comprises an area where a severe accident may result in a danger for the population that requires protective actions.

ENSI implements the Zone plans as a minimal spatial data model “Zone plans for emergency preparedness” (GeoIV Identifier 178, Download as ZIP file). They are also published on the Geoportal of the federal government.

The emergency preparedness partners responsible for emergency preparedness in the surroundings of nuclear installations are:

• The operators of nuclear installations,
• ENSI,
• Other federal agencies, amongst others:
  • Federal Civil Protection Crisis Management Board (CCMB),
  • Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH),
  • Federal Office for Civil Protection (FOCP),
  • National Emergency Operations Centre NEOC,
  • Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology (MeteoSwiss),
  • Swiss Armed Forces,
• The cantons,
• The regions and municipalities.