The new pricing of drinking water in the municipalities of Sud Sainte Baume has not stopped making people talk. And particularly in Signes.
During the November community council, we learned that, in the interest of harmonizing service throughout the territory, prices would be modified from 1is January 2025.
Signes appeared to be the big loser of this measure. Very critical, Mayor Hélène Verduyn expressed her anger, arguing that her fellow citizens' bills would increase by 106%.
Despite his vote and that of his deputy (Yves Reynard) against the deliberation, the latter was adopted by the elected officials.
A lack of fairness still criticized
Since then, a feeling of incomprehension has haunted local residents. It is in this sense that a gathering is planned in the small town of western Var, this Thursday, at 10 a.m.
At the head of the event, the La Chambrette association: “We want to tell the mayor that she is not alone and that she has the entire population behind her and on whom she can rely to say no”begins Irène Tauril.
According to the president, this vote attests “of a malfunction” more global within the public establishment of intermunicipal cooperation
(EPCI): “For us, it’s a group of mayors who trade with each other and never address the population.”
Just like the first magistrate, she points out this lack of fairness within the agglomeration: “It’s not fair that we pay the same as other municipalities like Sanary or Saint-Cyr. They benefit from the tourist windfall that we don’t have here.”
“A common good that cannot be marketed”
The citizen collective wants to ensure that the price of water does not increase in the village of around 3,000 inhabitants: “Signes is a small rural town. We do not draw water from the Canal de Provence, we have our own sources here.”
To do this, the association hopes for a return to the past: “We want municipal water management, as was the case before. Water is a common good, which cannot be traded and which should not be gambled on the stock market. We are for a return to management municipal.”
In order to raise awareness of its action, La Chambrette also launched a petition on the Internet. As of Wednesday evening, it had more than 180 signatures.
