The Clermont-Ferrand Administrative Court examined this Tuesday morning the various appeals concerning the diversion of Pertuis and Saint-Hostien on the RN 88. Appeals on the merits, concerning the order of the prefect of Haute-Loire taken on 28 October 2020 and relating to the environmental authorization of the road project. If the final decision will only be rendered within two weeks, the hearing allowed us to hear the conclusions of the public rapporteur. Conclusions which give a trend on the judgment that the court could make.
In total, four appeals were filed almost four years ago, by several associations (FNE 43, FNE Aura, SOS Loire-Vivante and the Auvergne transport users association), the manager of a company and two groups of political opponents in the majority within the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regional Council: environmentalists and the socialist group. The State and the Region (delegated project owner in this case) were represented at the hearing.
Of the four appeals presented, three were the subject of a request for inadmissibility from the public rapporteur. Only the associations' appeal was presented as admissible.
The question of compensatory measures
During the 40 minutes of the presentation of her conclusions, after dismissing several arguments from the associations, public rapporteur Carine Trimouille focused on compensatory measures. She examined the different points put forward by the opponents one by one, before ultimately requesting the partial annulment of two articles of the prefectural decree of October 28, 2020. “The public rapporteur considered that these two articles were insufficient , in terms of guarantee, because they provided for the compensatory measures to be carried out at the end of the work. However, the environmental code requires that these measures be effective, before the work begins”, summarizes Maître Mathieu. Victoria at the end of the hearing, lawyer for environmental protection associations. He recalled in his pleading that “these compensatory measures are totally insufficient”. Most of these compensatory measures involve land acquisitions and not all of them are carried out.
Conversely, the sub-prefect of Puy-en-Velay, speaking for the State, recalled that “the file had been investigated in depth by the State services. They significantly increased the ratio compensation for habitats of protected species These requirements led to a total of 215 hectares of compensation in total instead of 150 hectares,” she observed at the hearing. “This diversion is of major interest for road safety, for the comfort of the inhabitants of Pertuis and Saint-Hostien. It will make it possible to cope with an increase in traffic already observed, in an area where the car is the preferred means of transport “, explained Nathalie Cencic. Arguments that environmental protection associations have contested, once again, advocating “insufficiently studied alternative measures” or even short diversions of the two towns.
Will the work be stopped?
For the Aura Region's lawyer, “this is a deviation that has been expected for almost 30 years.” In terms of compensation: “this is an exemplary project. It is urgent that this project can be completed,” recalled Master Ludovic Cuzzi. He asked the court to allow the work to continue.
Because that’s the main question now. If the Administrative Court confirmed the rapporteur's conclusions, will the judgment be sufficient to stop the work? Difficult to know as it is. “It is likely to raise reflection on the question of compensatory measures.” From there to stopping the work? “It will also depend on what is noted in the judgment,” indicated the associations’ lawyer at the end of the hearing.
The president of the Administrative Court also asked where the deviation work was going. It was recalled that 40 million euros of expenditure had already been incurred. “The work is well advanced, three engineering structures have been carried out to restore the roads,” explained the region’s services.
The Clermont-Ferrand Administrative Court will deliver its judgment “within two weeks”. From there, environmental protection associations, such as the State and the region, will then be able to appeal within two months. The case would then be referred to the Lyon Administrative Court of Appeal.
