For ten years, the ASEN of our villages (association for the preservation of natural spaces) in Pays Hamois has been fighting against a wind project: that of the Douilly/Matigny wind farm. Created in January 2015 to say no to the project, the association has just won its legal battle against the company Parc éolien de la voie Corette.It is with great joy that I announce that we have won!“
The Council of State rejects the wind farm developer’s project
And to note: “While the developer, too sure of his impunity, had started the work without waiting for the court’s decision, the Council of State has given its decision and ruled in our favour. It overturns the decision of the Douai Court of Appeal which authorised the construction of wind turbines and delivery stations on Douilly and Matigny.” underlines Christophe Grizard, the president of the association.
The reason given? Lack of independence and impartiality in the investigation of the case.It was acknowledged that the State services that gave the environmental opinion and those that examined the file were part of the same hierarchy. The final decision could therefore not “benefit from real and satisfactory autonomy with regard to the necessary independence and impartiality”.” continues the president, citing the deliberations of the Council of State meeting of July 15, 2024, the decision of which was recorded on September 9.
“It’s a great victory”
And to note: “This decision has a regional impact. It denounces the excessive leniency of the Hauts-de-France State services towards developers in recent years. This may explain the saturation suffered by certain territories in our region. It is a great victory that crowns almost 10 years of fighting to protect our territory. It is the victory of democracy for the 28 municipalities that voted against this project. It is the beginning of the end of impunity for wind developers.“
Finally, the end of the wind project
As a reminder of the facts, a building permit for 13 machines had been filed in June 2015 in the municipalities of Douilly and Matigny. The public inquiry that followed in July 2016 then indicated strong opposition from residents to the project and a record participation, i.e. 1,600 contributions, according to ASEN de nos villages, “thus representing 90% of opposition. 28 neighbouring municipalities speak out against the project.” The developer then revised his copy and restricted his park to 9 wind turbines. The building permit was granted on April 7, 2017, permit canceled on February 14, 2020 by the Administrative Court of Amiens “on the grounds that it does not comply with the Matigny PLU” emphasizes Christophe Grizard. The developer appealed this decision and again proposed a reduction in the number of machines from 9 to 7 wind turbines. In November of the same year, the project was sold to another developer and the Douai administrative court of appeal authorized it to build 6 wind turbines in April 2023. The ASEN association of our villages in Pays hamois responded and filed an appeal in cassation with the Council of State, admitted in December 2023. The hearing then took place on July 15: the judgment of the Douai court of appeal was overturned by the Council of State for lack of impartiality of the investigation. This therefore put an end to the wind project.
These actions against the Douilly/Matigny wind project are being carried out by the ASEN association in our villages, but also by the Vent de Colère association in Villers-Saint-Christophe, which is being joined by four local residents, and the municipalities of Athies, Croix Moligneaux, Monchy-Lagache, Quivières, Ugny-l’Equipée, and Matigny in 2022. And Christophe Grizard notes: “Half of the funding for the appeals was provided by the Stop éolien Hauts-de-France collective and half by the budget of the six aforementioned municipalities.“
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