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Update
This is a first in France: in the Côtes d’Armor, a road will soon be permanently closed to traffic to protect frogs. These amphibians would die by the hundreds each winter while taking this departmental, in the midst of the breeding season.
Near Lamballe, the road to La Poterie (Côtes d’Armor) is one of the deadliest in Brittany for amphibians. Hundreds of them disappear under the wheels of cars every year. To protect biodiversity, the departmental 28 will be permanently closed. In the village, the decision is debated. “I am for the protection of nature, but amphibians must not come before men”, thus estimates a local resident.
For three years, between December and March, the migration period for amphibians, volunteers set up traps to take them through. Nearly 4,000 newts and toads were thus saved. The road has already been closed to traffic in previous winters, but this is the first time in France that it will be closed permanently. “We hope to show the way for the preservation of biodiversity on a national scale”, comments Jérémy Allain, deputy advisor for biodiversity in Lamballe. The road is used every day by more than 400 vehicles. Deviations will be put in place, and tracks are being studied to develop the track.