It is the end of a long administrative soap opera. In a few months, Patrick Andriollo, farmer in Audun-le-Tiche, will have to part with his pigs. Livestock, consisting of some 1,000 animals, has become undesirable.
His farm, which is part of the Gaec des Carrières, is located in the close protection perimeter of the Saint-Michel drain. This source is exploited by the municipality of Audun-le-Tiche and by the water union Fensch Lorraine (Seaff) for the supply of drinking water. This protection perimeter has been the subject of a public utility declaration request since 2011, on the basis of two opinions issued by a certified hydrogeologist.
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The slurry involved
After ten years of proceedings and despite the many proposals made by the breeder to safeguard his herd, the expropriation was pronounced. Slurry stored in a pit could contaminate groundwater in the event of ground movement. However, the galleries dug at the time of mining increase the risk factor. Under these conditions, the continuation of breeding turns out to be impossible.
In October 2019, a steering committee set up by the sub-prefect of Thionville, on the basis of a study by the Chamber of Agriculture of Moselle, assessed the damage at € 800,248.20 for Gaec. careers. Half of this sum will be used to clean up and demolish the slurry pit. Another part of this money will be invested in the compulsory construction of a covered manure pit for the breeding of cattle, which coexists with the pig breeding. The remainder constitutes the financial compensation received by the breeder and his partner, calculated on the basis of six years of operation.
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Who pays what?
It is now up to the town of Audun-le-Tiche and Seaff to find the distribution key for compensation. The elected Audunois hope to negotiate an amount in proportion to the volume of water exploited, ie 10%, against 90% for the Seaff. This allocation key will be the subject of discussions over the coming months.
Ironically, this declaration of public utility should not call into question the operation of the new Audun-le-Tiche quarry, whose right-of-way is only a few meters outside the protection perimeter. .
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