LGV Bordeaux-Toulouse: north of Toulouse, opponents of the project are organizing after the felling of several trees

S., the last “squirrel” spoke from the oak tree that lives, on the edge of the side canal, near the locks of Saint-Jory. This past Monday, this activist with his face hidden by a striped scarf tied around his head posted a video. “I am not suicidal, he warns in a calm voice. But I want to see if they (the government and the police, editor’s note) are ready to kill people for an ecocide project. They come to an end for me. I’m going to tie my nose around my neck. We’ll see how far they go. He decided to hold his position until November 15th. “Even if necessary to save the oak ​​​​​​through this cut, we are safe from anything,” explained Arthur Grimon, spokesman for the Task Force against the A69 and the LGV.

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“We will fight to the end”: north of Toulouse, movement of activists against LGV to prevent the felling of trees

The four other anti-LGV protesters who were sitting in the trees were sent out by representatives of the CNAMO (a unit that specializes in this type of intervention) during the weekend. Five plane trees were cut down despite the mobilization of several organizations and elected officials, such as the mayor of Saint-Jory and the LFI deputy for the 1st district Hadrien Clouet, to prevent this work which was planned as part of the railway development work in the north. from Toulouse (AFNT). This project will allow the LGV to see the light of day. It connects Toulouse to Paris in three hours.

A long legal battle

“This weekend’s demolition is a natural disaster. For activists, these last days have been decisive. Our actions have made the local population aware of the seriousness of the project this”, points out Jean Olivier, president of Friends of the Earth Midi-Pyrenees.

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Anti-LGVs are still in the trees to protect them in Saint-Jory, near Toulouse

Several associations tried to stop this work at the end of last week. Two requests for interim relief have been submitted to the Toulouse administrative court to suspend the cut. The latter was rejected on Friday 8 November, allowing work to resume. Consequences for the SNCF, which recalled that “all the authorizations have been obtained so that this project takes place in accordance with the relevant regulations, which the decision of the administrative court thus confirms”. this cut, which is planned in the environmental permit application file, will be balanced by mitigation and avoidance measures,” said the railway company.

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LGV Bordeaux-Toulouse: rows of plane trees condemned, activists take legal action

The Haute-Garonne prefecture welcomed the court’s decision, justifying the project with the need to address service challenges despite increased traffic. Opponents of the project, however, are not giving up. Jean Olivier confirms the illegality of this work: “it is forbidden to cut down a row of trees”. “This is a serious mistake by the SNCF. We are going to demand a moratorium on the vegetation that is still there. . For environmentalists, the legal battle continues.