Justice cancels the authorization of a road construction site in Alsace

The prefecture had authorized, in 2019, the construction of a five-kilometer road to bypass the town of Châtenois, for a budget of 60 million euros. The European Community of Alsace (CEA - resulting from the merger of the Departmental Councils of Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin) provided project management for the site.

This authorization had been challenged in court by the association Alsace Nature.

In their judgment, the magistrates noted "several defects" in the authorization granted. They point out that seven hectares of wetlands are destroyed by the project, and that the prefecture and the ECA "have not justified" sufficient compensation.

They also point to the absence of a reason of "major public interest" which would justify undermining the "29 protected species" (mammals, birds, reptiles, etc.) present in the project area.

For the prefecture, this major public interest was established by the "accident-prone nature" of the current road, and the "air pollution" it generates.

The court notes on the contrary that it is "not demonstrated" that improvements on the current road "would not be sufficient" and underlines that the project would be "at the origin of additional pollution by ten substances".

Consequently, he ruled out the possibility of subsequent regularization and declared "the illegality of the entire authorization".

“It is not a frequent decision for a road project, because the judge has a lot of power to regularize an illegal procedure”, analyzes for AFP Hubert Delzangles, professor of public law and expert in environmental law. "Here, he considers that it is not possible to regularize, in the absence of an imperative reason of major public interest."

"It's absurd to judge four years after the appeal", reacted for his part the mayor of Châtenois, Luc Adoneth. "The site is in the final phase, they are almost at the laying of the macadam", he observed. "It's a waste of public money, the stoppage of the site will cost several million euros to the CEA".

In a press release, the European Community of Alsace says it is "stunned by this decision" and announces that it is appealing the judgment by asking for the suspension of its execution "to allow the resumption of work".

She specifies that "nearly 1,8 million euros have already been invested in the environmental measures of the project".

Conversely, Alsace Nature welcomed the court's decision. "It is time to think of the necessary protection of water resources and the protection of biodiversity as crucial, well beyond the sole objectives of managing the flow of goods by truck transport".

"The associations are in no way in a dogmatic posture which would like no road to see the light of day", she continues, "but rather in a multifactorial analysis where nature can no longer serve as an adjustment variable".

For its part, the prefecture is "studying" the advisability of appealing, she announced to AFP.