“He did chilly that night …”, comments, without complaining, a climber harnessed, suspended from one of the two plane trees of the neighboring marinaat the entrance to the Guynemer court of Compiègne. This person spent the night a few meters from the ground, on a hammock hanging between the branches. This operation is a peaceful occupation of activists Against the future Seine North Canal.
At first glance, difficult to distinguish what is happening, at the top of this tree, especially when passing by car. The scene gives the impression of a storm that has flown away from the tents, caught up in the branches. It is not. They are simply “squirrels”. A means of action that was born at the time of the demonstrations against the A69 motorway, estimated unnecessary.
In Compiègne, several collectives take action, carried by the group Megacanal, no thank you. On the ground, some activists inform passers -by who wonders about their presence. “The goal is to raise awareness among the ecological and social aberration that this project represents,” explains Jean. (In this kind of actions, you do not give your first name and name).
These activists have already organized picnics along the banks of the Oise.
“Carnage” Seine North
“As long as we can stay, we stay,” explains an activist. We are lucky, the weather conditions were good, that night … “This ecological action represents no discomfort, sufficiently far from the vehicles that take the RN31 crossing Compiègne. By the way, Mayor Philippe Marini does not intend to act against freedom of expression. “They will stay as long as there are journalists,” he comments, pinches-Rire.
A few weeks ago, the mayor and president of Agglo de Compiègne presented the contours of the project to the new prefect Jean-Marie Caillaud, not far from it. The house of the Seine North canal houses a permanent exhibition on the subject. “The Seine-Nord Europe canal, a Grand Gabrit canal will connect Compiègne to Aubencheul-au-Bac in the Northexplains website. 107km long. Central link in the Seine-Escaut river bond, it will cross the Hauts-de-France. It will allow large size barges to circulate effectively between France, Belgium and the Netherlands. ”
From powder to the eyes, for anti-channels, which denounce a financial chasm, an ecological massacre, paradoxically more trucks and few jobs. “A” carnage “seine north,” says the leaflet.
Activists offer a public meeting Thursday, January 30, 6 p.m. at Shamrock, the advertising on the right bank, after the Louis XV bridge. “We are going to explain why militant ecological against river,” says Jean. This project is neither good for employment nor for the environment. “
The creation of “overvalued” jobs
Among the people present, there are members of Earth uprisings. But also the National Trees Surveillance Group (GNSA)represented by Bernard Debargue, who has just set up the local group. “The symbolism is to avoid cutting trees,” he says. These two plane trees represent all the trees which will be cut within the framework of this work. The trees are a resonance box. “
Elected ecologist on the list of the mayor of Compiègne, Eugénie Le Querré went to salute the “squirrels”. “She supported us,” says Bernard Debargue, who spends a large part of his time in the Compiègne forest.
“The argument of employment is false,” says Jean. Outside site, it is only the logistics platforms, fed by trucks, which will create some rare jobs. We were given a promise of 45,000 jobs when commissioning. But only 6000 are encrypted. On arrival, if we have 3000, it will be incredible. ”
“The Seine Nord canal will complete the destruction of the current river network, compete with the rail and feed the interior ports with thousands of trucks,” continues the anti-channel.
Regarding the ecological massacre, activists calculate an area of 3,200 hectares artificialized. “This threatens 200 protected species and will monopolize 35 million cubic meters of water,” says Jean. With the partially rebuilt and moved Oise. “
Not suitable bridges
The activist believes that the barges, beyond a certain size, will not pass under certain bridges. “The goal is to circulate“ 4000 tonnes ”. It does not exist on the Hauts-de-France market because they cannot circulate on the network. Everyone has small “900 tonnes” barges. The Seine Nord canal will be of intermediate template. What will navigate the canal are cereals and aggregates. The promise of containers is false. ”
Anti-channels claim that transparency is not the main virtue of this project. “We did not listen to anyone, including the mariners, when we are condemning the little bancellery. There is a policy of denavigation for the benefit of river motorways. ”
Yet alternatives exist, militants indicate:
- Use Le Havre-rather than Antwerp-the Seine to serve Ile-de-France
- modernize the main railway lines, regenerate the small lines
- Invest in the maintenance and modernization of existing channels
- relocate the flows of goods and stop their permanent inflation
