France, Coordination of Anarchist Groups CGA - IAL #103 -
Ecology, Great unnecessary and imposed projects: Dam Sivens (fr,
it, pt) [machine translation]
Everywhere in France, large companies are trying to cement each day more our environment,
the mere prospect of private interests. Yet some a·e·s stand against their destructive
profits, suffering the violence of the police and repressive state. ---- the dam project
sivens ---- Since 1989 the project of a dam in the forest is Sivens debate. Packed in
cartons and then emerged in 2007 before the need for irrigation of intensive crops, the
water of the dam is in effect for 70% for irrigation of corn twenty farms with little
sound farming practices the environment, and 30% for the periods of low flow, that is to
say, the dilution of pollutants. The project faces many challenges as it must be said that
the site chosen is not insignificant: a wetland, the last major of the Tarn. It is (was)
12 acres of beautiful forest, crossed by the Tescou, housing 94 protected species.
But what are the interests of saving a wetland? They have the ability to store and return
significant amounts of water. They also contribute to the mitigation of floods, prevent
flooding and contribute to slowing climate change. But are also the richest areas in
terrestrial and marine species. Representing 3% of French territory, they contain
one-third of threatened plant species as well as half of the birds in the same case.
During the twentieth century is 67% of them have disappeared.
For the destruction of the Sivens can now thank Landscaping Company Coteaux de Gascogne
(ACGC), semi-public company run by elected representatives, who boast of his "guards" of
wetlands. It is the latter who participated in the study recommended the construction of
the dam, and then voted in favor granted funding, and finally leading the project. So in
economic difficulty, CACG maintains its draft despite the new, stricter environmental
standards that make it unnecessary dam. Being paid to the percentage, the more expensive
the work, the more winning. With a cost of 10 million euros of public money, CACG shoves
sure full pockets. The debate is non-existent among major developers, like Mr. Carcenac,
President of the General Council of the Tarn and pitting · e · s. This is a real negation
of "democracy."
zad and resistance
The company was only until March 31, 2014 to begin clearing work, but thanks to the
occupation of the so-called ZADistes, the start of construction could be delayed. The work
started in September 2014. The forest had won 6 months extra life. Meanwhile, the ZAD
(Zone To Defend) organizes the sheds buildings, barricades, places of lives and planting a
vegetable garden. But on May 16, CRS expel capita · e · s of the forest. Within hours is
destroyed if that had took months to be built. Despite this, the determination of
resistant · e · s is not defeated, and a call for mobilization launched in August
While the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy request an evaluation
report the project in September 2014, the first of that month, the bulldozers arrive in
the Forest of Sivens, accompanied by gendarmes and other CRS. The resistant · e · s still
trying to oppose deforestation. As the days, continuing deforestation and the challenge is
repressed by force. There are countless cases of police violence: shots of flash-ball in
the torso, gassing opponent · e · s pacifist hype resistant · e · s hunger strike,
throwing grenades on militant · e · s, arrests without cause destruction by fire personal
business, window smashed cars, flat tires, provocations, insults, humiliations ...
While the forest is razed, a demonstration is organized on the ZAD for "root resistance"
throughout the weekend of 25 and 26 October 2014. But while the mobilization is pacifist,
the unnecessary presence of the forces of order that had nothing to defend except toilets
and compressors, raises tensions manifesting · e · s and mobile policemen. By the
mid-afternoon the clashes broke out, and rotate to throw stones against tear gas and
throwing grenades.
After the trees they cut down men.
The confrontation will continue later into the night, where security forces, apparently
eager to do battle launched more than 400 grenades. One of them will kill a young
demonstrator: Rémy, 21, student of botany. The two days that followed the tragedy were
marked by events in his memory on Gaillac and Albi, but because of the deliberately
provocative presence of the CRS data lead to new clashes. Mr Carcenac, in its infinite
wisdom said that "To die for ideas is one thing, but it's still relatively dumb and
stupid. "Since the night of the murder, there is no police presence on the site.
Life on the zad
The watchword of the camp is: self-management. Everyone · e done the dishes, range what he
/ she has used · e. Nobody gives order nor goes behind for storage, if that requires a
real organization capita · e · s. The ZAD is broken down into "camps" each of which is
responsible for its own management. The food stocks are at the farm with free access for
tou · te · s, regularly and generously supplied by donations around by farmers and farmers
solidarity movement, until the vegetable is bearing fruit and that the ZAD become
completely autonomous. To terms of hygiene, dry toilets and showers improvised using
pallets and tarpaulins are the case.
While it is clear that all is far from perfect and that much progress still to be made, it
nevertheless remains a place of experimentation and organization of another company that
stands firmly against capitalism and its ravages.
Great unnecessary and imposed projects
The Sivens dam project is not the only large and imposed unnecessary project. If the
airport on the site of Notre-Dame-des-Landes is well known, others deserve to be
presented. Factory farm a thousand cows, stadium, Holiday park, shopping mall, hyper
incinerator and online at medium speed are the big useless projects and imposed on the
people, ecological, socio-economic and human disastrous. Everywhere, the motivation of
investigators is the same: profit! There is often also the company Vinci ecocidal behind
these projects. But resistance was organized and everywhere in France ZAD bloom. Damien
(Group UAF Montpellier)
Text largely based on the article "Why fight" Communist Anarchist Theory, thank you to the
author
[http://theorie.anarchiste-communiste.over-blog.com/article-pourquoi-lutter-57654232.html]
FARJ, Social Anarchism and organization. Braséro Social, 2013, 306 pages.
[http://www.anarkismo.net/article/23573] Malatesta, "The organization"
[http://kropot.free.fr/Malatesta-organisation.htm#II] Coordination Lucien Collonges
(collective), Self-management yesterday, today, tomorrow. Syllepse Editions, 2010, 695
pages. Gaetano Manfredonia, World History of anarchy. Co-published Textuel and Arte
Publishing, 2014, 288 pages. Texts "What CGA"
[http://cga.org/content/quest-ce-que-la-cga-0] and "The principles and workings of CGA
"[http://www.cga.org/sites/default/files/positions_politiques_de_la_cga.pdf]
http://www.c-g-a.org/motion/grands-projets-inutiles-et-imposes-le-barrage-de-sivens
