It’s a first ! Never has a beach been closed to the public for so long due to deposits of green algae. For the past six months, the Hôtellerie beach in Hillion, in the Bay of St-Brieuc, has been prohibited from access for health reasons.
Even in winter, green algae are still talked about. The Hôtellerie beach in Hillion, in the bay of Saint-Brieuc, in the Côtes-d’Armor has been closed for more than six months. Impassable, odorous and dangerous for health. Associations, residents and town hall make the same observation, they alert, all in the same direction, but are still waiting for answers and resources.
In memory of locals, never had a beach been closed for so long.
Rooted activist, André Ollivro, president of the association Halte aux marées verte calls for a change in agricultural practices and the abolition of intensive farming. As he walks along the beach, he asks that these algae be collected and not only in summer. “These algae that remain in suspension, he explains, will be fed and we risk having a tsunami of green algae in the spring across northern Brittany. ”
With Alain Lafrogne, residents of the beach, they deplore the ineffectiveness of the various green algae plans. These activists have the feeling that they are speaking into a vacuum. According to them, the progress of public authorities is too timid.
Among the advances despite everything, the appointment in the fall of a sub-prefect dedicated to the problem of green algae. An appointment welcomed by the mayor of the town of Hillion, Mickaël Cosson. “The novelty is that we now have an interlocutor, he observes, but he must have a suitcase with him and tools to be able to use them. What we want are concrete actions and not just intentions. Actions such as tests carried out on collection, support to modify the agricultural sector … “
By the own admission of the sub-prefect, at the time of his appointment, much remains to be done.
An action plan with financial resources to control waste from farms is being drawn up.