Lafarge accused of polluting the Seine, Hidalgo denounces an "ecological scandal"

"It is a real ecological scandal, while we have been working with our partners for many years to improve the quality of the river," said the socialist mayor of the capital, sharing the information revealed by Europe 1 on Twitter.

According to the radio, a Lafarge factory located in the Bercy district, in the east of the capital, discharges into the river a mixture of "cement particles, treatment liquids and plastic microfibers".

Contacted by AFP, the Paris prosecutor's office announced that an investigation had already been opened since the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB) noted on August 27 a "suspicion of pollution of the Seine by a public works company ".

The Minister for the Ecological Transition Barbara Pompili indicated that inspectors from her ministry were going to go there and that those "responsible would be prosecuted".

In a press release, Lafarge said it was "victim" and says that the flow in question is the result of "an exceptional accident caused by a malicious act", and is in no way a voluntary act of the company.

According to the cement manufacturer, "the flow has been stopped" and the control actions on the plants will be reinforced.

At the end of August, the public prosecutor's office entrusted the OFB and the river brigade with a judicial investigation for "dumping of harmful substances by a legal person", "throwing or abandonment by a legal person of harmful substances" and "use of phytosanitary products without respecting the conditions. of use ".

The mayor of Paris in turn requested on Tuesday the referral of the public prosecutor, "including the self-referral of the public prosecutor, for a statement of criminal offense and a preliminary investigation," said Emmanuel Grégoire, first deputy , during a press conference.

"We are very angry", launched the elected, who accuses the cement manufacturer of not having sufficiently monitored the site in question and of having informed the town hall too late, warned that "last night around 23:00 pm", while the investigation began on the 27th. This "leaves doubt about the explanation put forward", added Mr. Grégoire, adding that this incident "will not be without consequences on our overall outlook on this type of site".

Control of the banks

The deputy mayor also asked the public establishment Ports de Paris, which concedes the sites, "to put in place surveillance measures", threatening to "regain control of the banks" of the Seine.

The elected official also said to receive since Tuesday testimonies from local residents "who report for all the groups that produce cement of dubious practices", such as direct spills in the Seine or pirate emptying.

Earlier this year, Lafarge-Holcim had already been accused of polluting the Seine by Extinction Rebellion activists.

Targeted by a series of actions by the environmental group on several of its Parisian sites, the company then assured that its facilities met "strictly environmental standards and that no pollution of the Seine had been caused" by their operation.

In April 2019, the Vinci group was also accused of dumping concrete residue in the Seine on the site of one of its subsidiaries, located in Nanterre. He was then sentenced to a fine of 50.000 euros.

"We deplore the too great weakness of the sanctions" which are not dissuasive enough, insisted Emmanuel Grégoire.