Avant, “it was sand, not water”. The phenomenon of coastal erosion, which is only increasing, disconcerts mayors in Guadeloupe, faced with tragic human situations and colossal costs to move populations.
In Capesterre-Belle-Eau in Basse-Terre, Frantz Bissessar, 69, looks at the sea with nostalgia. “When I was little, we could reach these two points on foot: it was sand, not water”he says, showing the remains of the old powder magazine of a colonial military battery which collapsed into the waves below, a few months ago, and an artificial dike which extends into the sea and protects the beach, about a hundred meters away.
Because, in this area which saw the landing of Christopher Columbus in Guadeloupe on November 4, 1493, the sea and the runoff of the rain relentlessly eat away at the 15 km of municipal coast, endangering the habitats of 78 families.
In the Sainte-Marie district, we remember this morning in August 2017, when the cliff gave way, carrying a house into the water, without causing any casualties.
“Since then, a security barrier has been installed, but the coast continues to recede, at a rate of seven to eight meters in five years”sighs Camille Dognon, deputy mayor in charge of town planning. He estimates that in ten years, “around fifteen houses”on the other side of the road, will in turn be threatened.
Capesterre is not the only municipality in Guadeloupe to experience the phenomenon of coastline recession and its consequences.
In Petit-Bourg, the neighboring commune, the first population movements have already taken place, thanks to a system, initiated in the 2010s, of the “hand-sewn” in the words of the sub-prefect at the time who supervised the operations, the situation was so complex: inhabitants without property titles, with limited means, attached to their house and their memories, etc.
“We will have a similar device”assures Mr. Dognon, however worried about the delays required by these procedures.
“Like in Venice”
“My town is caught between the sea and the mountains”underlines Camille Élisabeth, the mayor of Pointe-Noire, a coastal town in the west of Basse-Terre also facing the problem. “Unlike Petit-Bourg (on the east coast, Editor’s note), I have no land reserve, and the Department of the Environment, Planning and Housing told me 130 people would be displaced” dont “ten urgent”.
-Since Monday, the annual congress of coastal mayors has been held in Guadeloupe during which the mayor of the island of Miquelon-Langlade, of the archipelago of Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, came to present the situation of his village, forced to travel due to rising ocean levels.
In Guadeloupe, according to studies, 42,500 people are exposed to this risk, i.e. 10% of the population, and 50% of the housing stock threatened in Overseas Territories is located in Guadeloupe.
“We won’t cut it”
Among the most exposed areas, the Pointe-à-Pitre agglomeration stands out well. “There is a submerged development model to be found for the city”indicates Harry Durimel, its mayor.
“Perhaps we should start to accept that water can enter certain arteries of the city, like in Venice”he concedes, imagining restoring water to the rue Vatable canal, filled in the 19th century during work to modernize the town.
But, reminds the city councilor, “the consensus on the risk incurred by the city within the municipal council does not exist”nor the means which would make it possible to cover the cost of such projects.
Because moving populations or deploying nature-based solutions has a cost. “18 million euros for my project”estimates for example Jean-Claude Maes, the mayor of Capesterre-de-Marie-Galante, on the east coast of the island of Marie-Galante, who wants to build a “four-meter breakwater riprap to protect” its town center from the swell.
“We will not cut corners: we will have to provide the necessary resources for the municipalities affected by the erosion of the coastline”declared, during his visit to Guadeloupe in recent days, Fabrice Loher, now outgoing Minister of the Sea, after the government's censorship on Wednesday.
“But due to the complicated budgetary debate,” he admitted, “it may not be this year that we will have a dedicated support fund.”
