The Swiss government has moved to begin talks with the European Union regarding its participation in the Copernicus Earth observation programme. 

The multi-billion-Euro programme was launched in 1998 by the EU and European Space Agency (ESA), aiming to provide a vast range of geographic data including environmental monitoring. 

“Association to Copernicus would allow Switzerland to have a say in shaping the programme, ensure access to this data in the long term and allow industry to participate in the programme's procurements,” according to a government statement this week. 

In order to join the programme, Switzerland will need to reach a bilateral association agreement with Brussels and submit it to the Swiss parliament for approval, the government added. 

The scheme includes six Sentinel satellite missions aimed at supplying data to assist policymakers in structuring environmental legislation, says a Swiss Info report, and react to emergencies such as humanitarian crises or natural disasters. 

The satellites are developed by the European Space Agency, of which Switzerland is a founding member, and the EU oversees data and services provided by the Copernicus programme, ensuring its operability over the long-term, together with the ESA, EU member states and agencies.

Copernicus is one of the European Union’s two space programmes, the other being satellite-navigation initiative Galileo, which is designed to rival the leading U.S. Global Positioning System.

The cost of the system was an estimated €6.7 billion to set up and operate between 1998 and 2020. Forecasts suggest the Copernicus observation data will help bolster Europe’s economy by as much as €30 billion up until 2030.