In the Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Val-d'Oise or Pas-de-Calais. Just last week, the local press reported similar problems. All over France, recently, groups of residents have been forming to oppose the construction of gigantic relay antennas a stone's throw from their homes. Not so much because they are opposed to the interconnected world, but because they judge that it distorts the landscape and that they believe that we do not have the necessary perspective to judge the impact of waves on our lives and our health.
New example in Sorgues, in the Brantes sector, where an entire neighborhood is mobilizing against a building of this type from the operator Free. A petition has already collected more than 260 signatures. But it is above all the direct proximity of the 18th century castle which moves the entire local ecosystem. “No contact has been made with the neighbors and residents who see their land inevitably devalued, writes Charles-Hubert de Brantes, its owner. Nor with the Château de Brantes even though this antenna project will be located within the protection radius of any historical monument.”
Very precisely 390 meters from its surrounding wall, listed in the inventory of historical monuments. And above all, the antenna will be clearly visible from the windows and the park of the castle, which will further distort its already very urbanized environment. “We did the test with balloons pulled at the end of wires 26 meters high, and the higher they went, the more it gave the idea of the visual impact that the antenna will have, it was immense,” laments Colombine d'Aboville, sister-in-law of the owner. It was last February that the family was informed by the neighborhood association of the project after a building permit sign was posted on a small plot of land on Chemin de Brantes. And time is running out since the concrete slab which will support the antenna has been poured in recent days.
A non-suspensive legal remedy
This Friday, there were around twenty of them meeting on the ground in question. “I'm not interested in having an antenna like that next to my house, says the owner of the house adjoining the land. I renovated the whole house seven years ago. And it's going to be harmful to your health of my children, one of them has his window which overlooks the antenna.” In the audience, teachers from the École des Sorgues, of Steiner pedagogy and located 280 meters from the antenna project, confirm the concerns of many parents. The Bécassières school is also 400 meters away. Just like the Montesquieu professional high school. And a nursery is also under construction.
“We tried to send registered letters to the owner, he never responded, indicates Pierre Pudico, member of the Brantes, La Traille, Guerre association. In person, he refused to discuss and lowered his head. He rents the plot to Free and it generally brings in a range between 10 and 20,000 euros per year.”
Very aware of the problem, Mayor Thierry Lagneau would have informed the collective of his powerlessness to oppose this type of project. The residents therefore decided to engage in the legal battle, by filing an appeal before the administrative court. Not suspensive, this nevertheless does not block the progress of the work.
Another argument and not the least, the presence nearby of several other antennas. Particularly less than 100 meters from the new one, where two large masts almost 20 meters high are already being erected, one for the operator SFR and the other for Bouygues Télécom. Residents could therefore find themselves with three antennas in 100 meters. “We are in an area with 96% coverage, estimates Jean-François Bielak, who lives 350 meters from the discord antenna. I had a Free subscription for my father in the sector and we received it without any problem. Above the town hall, we shared a structure for three operators and we wouldn't do it here?” And the local resident maintains hope, stating that “antennas have already been dismantled” by court decision.
