From our special correspondent in Indre-et-Loire,
It’s scorching heat, and not the shadow of a gray cloud, a sign of a few beneficial drops, on the horizon, this August 22. On the island of La Métairie (Indre-et-Loire), despite the coolness of the banks of the Loire, the people of Touraine are suffocating. “With this furnace, frankly, they are very brave! “, comments a supporter of this curious procession of cyclists who have been crisscrossing the roads since August 18, symbolically baptized the “water convoy”.
It is that after the clashes in Sainte-Soline, then the announcement of the dissolution of the Uprisings of the Earth, and finally the suspension of this dissolution by the Council of State (did you follow everything?), the “water » and « mega basins » had not really progressed. And this despite the heat wave and drought, historic in some places, which have been hitting France for months. So, to relaunch the debate, an armada of several hundred convinced environmental activists on bicycles, followed by around twenty tractors, set off from Lezay, near Sainte-Soline, in Deux-Sèvres. With the objective of reaching Paris on August 26 for a grand finale, after having honored a dozen symbolic stages on the way, and having collected around 300 kilometers.
” 20 minutes » followed the convoy, camera in hand, for a day. Our video report can be seen and listened to at the top of this article.
A long-term action this time, driven by theEarth Uprisingsthere Peasant Confederation and the collective “Basins no thank you”. The goal ? Denounce the monopolization of water and soil by agro-industry, demonstrate against the exponential installation of mega-basins on the territory, and campaign for a fairer distribution of water uses for all.
A militant halt at the water’s edge
While the shade is becoming increasingly rare on the island of La Métairie, this Tuesday near Tours, volunteers have gradually taken possession of the premises. Direction signs installed and visible, cars well “tidy”… Everything must be secured before the arrival of the convoy which has planned a short break at the water’s edge, after having made a stop in Tours to support the five activists of ” Latest Renovation” who were appearing in court. “Watch out, here they are! exclaims Albine, referent of the Tours stage. In the distance, it chants “no bassaran! to the rhythm of the “dring dring” of the little bicycle horns. Then the first cyclists arrive, sweating but smiling, camouflaged under hats to try to escape the scorching rays of the sun. Followed by colorful and festive tractors. With stages of around 50 kilometers per day, inevitably, it takes a bit.
So, to relax their muscles, after parking their bikes near the kiosk, the most motivated rush into the water, while the most tired prefer to stretch out on the grass or on the sand. To the great surprise of the thirty onlookers who came to cool off. “Excuse me, what is all this?” », asks a holidaymaker to one of the activists, while a few meters away, activists are singing « we are Les Uprisings of the Earth! to the rhythm of lapping.
On the grassy plain, a clarinet sings a melody with voluptuous notes. Some activists take the opportunity to take a nap. But a background of persistent struggle is heard. Because if the members of the “water convoy” are there, it is also and above all to denounce the climate inaction of the State and to speak out against a policy that they consider climaticidal. Several speakers therefore take advantage of this interlude to talk about water pollution, fishing and biodiversity. An alert volunteer, “I have never seen the level of the Loire as low as this summer. It’s worrying “. And for good reason: since June 10, several municipalities in Indre-et-Loire have been placed in heightened alert zone due to the drought affecting the department. And since June 30, eleven rivers have been classified as “DCR”, “Crisis threshold flow”.
A hundred volunteers at each stage
After two short hours of relaxation, probably too short for the scalded thighs, the cyclists resume their mounts in the direction of the bivouac installed in Lussault-sur-Loire. That’s another twenty kilometers before tasting the meal prepared by around thirty volunteers busy behind the stoves.
Opposite the town hall, at the entrance to the old stadium of the town which welcomes the conveyors for the night, volunteers discuss with a gendarme. “There are people behind each of us”, explains the first to the representative of the police who came to secure the area. “Yes, we’re not here to hit each other,” he replies.
It’s time to relax. The first to arrive rush to the drinking water point to refill the water bottles. Then, having set up their tents, they head to the bar in the hope of enjoying a nice cold beer. Around the tables, small groups form and continue the debates started, on the way, on the bicycles.
All around, the “street-medics” are already receiving the first casualties, light. Meanwhile, right next door, the most handymen are busy repairing small or large sores on bikes worn out by the bitumen.
Behind, a gathering challenges: it is a “debrief” for the organizers and referents. What worked, or not. What to do better next time. And then what is planned tomorrow. Because the road is not yet finished. In total, it took three months to prepare for this one-week journey, hundreds of volunteers at each stage, the agreement of the authorities for each of the installations. And the sweat of hundreds of environmental activists.
There are still a little less than ten stages before the finish in the capital next Saturday. And the water convoy, pacifist, intends to reach the end.