A hydroelectric plant, recently built on the Sallanche River in Haute-Savoie and suspended last year by the courts, will be able to open pending a judgment on the merits, said Saturday the mayor of the commune. This opening, scheduled for the coming days, was made possible by an order issued Thursday by the Administrative Court of Appeal of Lyon, which overturns a previous judgment rendered last December by the Administrative Court of Grenoble. Seized by the association France Nature Environnement Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, this judgment blocked the project and ordered a "restoration of the site within 12 months".

However, "it does not appear that the work at issue (...) could be regarded as an obstacle to ecological continuity," said the Lyon Court of Appeal in its decision. "It is thus suspended the execution of the judgment of the administrative court of Grenoble until the administrative court of appeal of Lyon rules on the case on the merits," she continues. The judgment on the merits is expected at the end of the year or early next year, according to the mayor.

Renewable energy versus biodiversity

The mayor of the municipality of Sallanches, Georges Morand, welcomed this decision, considering that the appeal of FNE was an "ecological nonsense", and recalling that the company had invested 6 million euros in this brand new plant. It should now open as soon as possible, he added: "We will have no problem because we had already done tests before. So this week, if there's water, we're going."

The deputy of Haute-Savoie Xavier Roseren also said he welcomed "this decision full of common sense in a context of energy sovereignty, inflation and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions". The plant "will supply a total of the equivalent of the consumption of 20% of homes in Sallanches with renewable energy," he wrote on Facebook.



Conversely, the FNE deplored in a statement "a serious mistake for biodiversity", ensuring that it does not "give up (in the face of) a temporary decision". "The construction of the plant on a site identified as a biological reservoir is detrimental to the health of waterways and the survival of biodiversity. This river was identified as a non-developable torrent," she says.


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