In Fontafie in Charente, a group of local residents have been complaining for three years about the noise caused day and night by the generator of the neighboring sawmill. The prefecture has asked the company to stop after 10 p.m. and on weekends, but the company refuses to comply, even if it means going to court.
An electric generator dries wood day and night in the town of Fontafie, in Charente. An incessant buzz that invades the daily lives of the neighbors of this sawmill. There are around ten local residents who have suffered from this nuisance for three years. “I tried earplugs, but they prevented me from falling asleep. I had to take my medication again to sleep,” says a retiree. “It’s like the sound of an airplane, it’s a whirring sound that we always have in our heads, it’s lamentable.”
In Fontafie in Charente, a group of local residents have been complaining for three years about the noise caused day and night by the generator of the neighboring sawmill. The prefecture has asked the company to stop after 10 p.m. and on weekends, but the company refuses to comply, even if it means going to court.
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© Christophe Guinot / France Télévisions
To push the company to invest in better insulation of the building, they negotiated, signed a petition, and even filed a complaint with the gendarmerie. “We have nothing against this company which has been there now for 30 years. On the contrary, we are even proud to have this economic activity in the sector. The Joslet company is an institution that we respect, but on the other hand what we would like is to be respected”, explains a local resident.
The red boxes represent the too high number of decibels generated by the Fontafie sawmill.
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© Christophe Guinot / France Télévisions
According to an independent expert commissioned by the Regional Directorate of Environment, Planning and Housinggenerator noise would exceed regulatory levels by several decibels at nights and weekends. At the end of March, the Charente prefecture filed an order restricting the use of this generator. “Operation is partially suspended every night from Monday to Friday, every Saturday, Sunday and public holidays.”
But the sawmill is not currently complying with the order. The company manager claims to have already installed acoustic panels, and to be obliged to operate her dryer day and night. The company is challenging the prefectural decree before the Poitiers administrative court. A decision is expected this Friday, April 19.
