There are 42,000 tonnes of toxic waste, including arsenic, mercury and asbestos, lying dormant in a former potash mine in Wittelsheim, in Haut-Rhin. This Tuesday, the Minister of Ecological Transition announced Tuesday his intention to begin “immediately” the containment work, which must be. The objective being to enclose them in concrete “must be completed by 2027”.
Christophe Béchu maintains that this is the “only solution to ensure that waste cannot contaminate the water table” in Alsace which supplies drinking water to nearly 8 million inhabitants. But the LFI-Nupes deputies are calling for the opening of a parliamentary commission of inquiry into “the wait-and-see attitude of public authorities”. They believe that this solution of “permanent burial of waste” is to the detriment of a scenario of removing waste from the mine, according to a press release published by Insoumis elected official Emmanuel Fernandes.
Long hesitations
“Several material elements suggest that the public authorities have for twenty years been playing for time by letting the galleries deteriorate in order to impose” the solution of definitive confinement, judge Emmanuel Fernandes. He refers to the hesitations observed on the course of action to be taken in this matter since the fire which occurred in 2002 on the Stocamine site, which put an end to the storage of additional waste but opened up a real puzzle as to the future of the waste. already present.
This communication from MP Insoumis comes at a time when an administrative procedure ultimately aiming to authorize the confinement of waste under concrete must result in the signing of a prefectural decree “before the end of September”, announced the ministry. So far, the storage of waste is only authorized temporarily, until 2027. This authorization will mark the real green light for the start of the project. Christophe Béchu also announced his arrival “in the coming weeks” on the site.
The Alsace water table
In the region, elected officials from all sides have campaigned on the contrary for at least partial removal of waste, fearing that their confinement under concrete will not ultimately prevent pollution of the Alsace water table. In June, a public survey was carried out among local residents on the project to contain waste. It received 98% unfavorable opinions. “Opinions in favor of the project can be counted on the fingers of one hand,” noted the commission in charge of the public inquiry.
The Strasbourg public prosecutor’s office is currently conducting an investigation into the nature of the waste stored at Stocamine, supposed to be non-flammable, but at the origin of the underground fire which lasted several months in 2002.