A-Infos (en) France, UCL AL #374 - Environment - Ille-et-Vilaine: A Crematorium Project Sparks Controversy! (ca, de, fr, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

Near Fougères, a proposed crematorium project has mobilized 
environmental groups and local residents. At issue is a plan that 
threatens the region's drinking water reserves. The situation involves 
an administrative muddle that perfectly illustrates how decisions are 
made: while several consultative bodies oppose the project, final 
decisions are reached in closed-door sessions-which, fortunately, may 
sometimes align with local citizens' demands.
Rodolphe Hameau, the mayor of Saint-Germain-en-Coglès (near Fougères), 
took the initiative to propose building a crematorium. Although the need 
was acknowledged and surrounding inter-municipal authorities had already 
begun considering the project, progress had stalled; Hameau effectively 
beat them to the punch.

This new project impacts the local environment. A hydrogeologist's 
study-conducted when the business park (where the facility would be 
located) was first created-had already flagged the site as problematic, 
though it ultimately issued a favorable opinion subject to numerous 
conditions. Yet, this opinion was not included in the file for the 2025 
public inquiry. Why? Likely because it also revealed another glaring 
issue: the study noted that the sanitation network was already 
undersized and poorly designed, even for the business park activities 
originally envisioned.

Despite this, a building permit was granted in late 2025 amidst a lack 
of transparency, even as a coalition comprising a local residents' 
association and two environmental groups was actively campaigning 
against the project with a simple, clear message: "Yes to the 
crematorium, but 'no'-not here." Papillon - Fougères SDT Committee
The project is located within the extended perimeter of a drinking water 
catchment zone. While the risk of polluting the area and the abstracted 
water might have been grounds enough to oppose the project on its own, 
other reasons eventually came to light. Let us focus on the core of the 
opposition: these specific catchment sites operate at 20% of their 
capacity to supply drinking water to the city of Rennes, serving as a 
vital local water source. This 20% share is managed by "Eau du bassin 
rennais-collectivité," which issued an unfavorable opinion on the 
project. The Regional Health Agency also issued an unfavorable opinion, 
followed by the Local Water Commission. That makes three unfavorable 
opinions-none of which appeared in the public inquiry report! Despite 
this, only the mayor and the project developer dug in their heels, 
persisting in their joint determination to push the project through 
while downplaying the well-substantiated arguments raised against it.

A striking-and bizarrely unsettling-detail is the conclusion reached by 
the public inquiry commissioner, who issued a *favorable* opinion! This 
perfectly illustrates the level of trust one can place in public 
inquiries. They rarely issue negative opinions, overwhelmingly favoring 
projects on the grounds that they foster growth. Ultimately, however, 
the Departmental Council for the Environment and Health Risks issued a 
unanimous unfavorable opinion-a very rare occurrence. Consequently, the 
Prefect vetoed the project in June 2026. The developer and the 
municipality have two months to file an appeal. Should an appeal take 
place, the inquiry commissioner's opinion will be taken into account.

So much for all the other consultative bodies-long live democracy! 
Papillon (Fougères local committee of Les Soulèvements de la Terre)

https://www.unioncommunistelibertaire.org/?Ille-et-Vilaine-Un-projet-de-crematorium-qui-met-le-feu
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