Vuisternens-devant-Romont (FR) is angry about wind power

The municipality of Vuisternens-devant-Romont, in the canton of Fribourg, largely rejected the initiative “for a secure electricity supply” on June 9. A vote in reaction to a wind farm project which is raising the hackles of residents. Reporting.

Arriving in the center of the village of Vuisternens-devant-Romont, 2,381 inhabitants, the first place to discover is undoubtedly the local restaurant: the Relais Saint-Jacques. “It’s almost an institution,” the caretaker told us. The discussions are friendly, between Eurofoot and alleged polluted basins in the area.

It’s time for breakfast. The coffees follow one another like the topics, before the first beers and glasses of rosé appear on the tables. But we are not here by chance. During the June 9 vote for electricity supply, Vuisternens-devant-Romont rejected the initiative by 60%, while the Swiss people largely approved it (68.7%). How to explain this choice?

As soon as we want to bring up the subject, the volume drops. They are silent people. You have to let the discussion begin gradually and throw the hot topic on the table in the hope that it will bite.

The Relais Saint-Jacques employee guides us among the regulars, she who has worked in the establishment for almost 11 years. She is a privileged spectator of the debates:

The fear of seeing a scarred landscape predominates in the Friborg bistro. Indeed, a cantonal wind power plan plans to install, among other things, propellers in the territory of Vuisternens-devant-Romont. According to Pierre Vaudan, spokesperson for the cantonal Directorate of the Economy, Employment and Vocational Training, planning has been validated by the Confederation and 20 to 25 wind turbines on three or four sites are under study.

The president of the Save the Gibloux Forests association, Charles Phillot, insists on the aberration of the June 9 vote:

According to a study, in Switzerland, wind energy could produce 29.5 terawatt hours (TWh) each year, including 19 TWh during the winter semester alone. The canton of Friborg aims to produce 160 gigawatt hours (GWh) of wind energy by 2035. This is approximately the amount currently produced throughout Switzerland.

But discontent is growing in the region because of the wind project. The lawyer for the municipalities concerned, David Ecoffey, has repeatedly denounced conflicts of interest in this matter. In his eyes, there is in cantonal wind power a “permanent and institutionalized conflict”.

He particularly deplored the different hats of the State Councilor and Director of the Economy Olivier Curty. The latter is also a director of Group E which owns 90% of the Greenwatt entity, active in wind power.

“We can get used to these wind turbines”

“There is often a breeze on the Glâne,” says a man, who grew up in the region and now lives in Gruyère. The latter would prefer that the authorities invest differently:

A request that the trustee of Vuisternens-devant-Romont, Jacques Dumas, contacted by us, brushes aside:

Another customer of the bistro, in a playful tone, assures that some would prefer to “relaunch nuclear energy to the detriment of wind energy”.

The discussion gets lively: “I am not green, I simply want to respect nature as it is given to us. We must respect it,” says a resident of Sâles, before the waitress, with a smirk, addresses him with a harmless jab:

The latter explains to us the problems that reign in the region and above all the distrust of the population: “I voted against this initiative. I assume that I have done enough. For example, I received 2,200 bales from the Confederation out of the 45,000 francs invested for the photovoltaic panels on my roof. We get too little help.”

And he doesn’t lose his temper:

If the mouths remain mostly locked, we nevertheless catch snatches of conversation: “We can get used to these wind turbines. When I go to Valais, I no longer even see the one that sits in Martigny, along the highway,” confesses another regular at the bar – who admits to having refused the initiative of June 9.

The president of the Saving the Gibloux Forests association, Charles Phillot, is also against the political strategy:

An anger that is just as palpable in the municipality of Vuisternens-devant-Romont: “The municipal council and its citizens are firmly opposed to the installation of wind turbines on its territory,” Jacques Dumas tells us by email. The elected official indicates that there is currently “no concrete project”, he assures that several wind turbines are planned in his municipality:

The trustee, still by email, is convinced that last Sunday’s vote is the result of a population that feels wronged: