France’s Green Party Supports Anti-Nuclear Activists

On September 21st, France’s Green Party movement, ‘Europe Écologie Les Verts’ or EELV, once again threw its support behind seven anti-nuclear activists who are the opponents of Cigéo’s nuclear waste landfill project in Bure, eastern France. 

The backing came after a criminal court in Bar-le-Duc tried them on June 1st for participating in an anti-nuclear demonstration in August 2017.

The court accused the anti-nuclear activists of what it called “criminal association” and “unlawful demonstration”.

The EELV also denounced the court and called the move an intimidation trial in which two of the activists were sentenced to jail. 

Why the activists were arrested?
The activists were arrested in August 2017 during a protest rally against the notorious Cigéo Project in Bure. Cigéo Project is a plan for a storage facility where radioactive waste will be buried in deep geological strata. 

According to the European Parliament, the Cigéo Project will allow the French government to bury all the high-activity long-lived radioactive waste that its facilities produce until the time they are decommissioned. Project costs are estimated at between EUR 15 billion and EUR 36 billion.

Why people are against the Cigéo project?
The project has been a controversial issue in France for years. Several national public debates have already been organized around the Cigéo project and the management of nuclear waste, particularly in 2013 and 2019.The opponents of the project vary from local farmers to social movements. Opponents say the Cigéo Project is costly and dangerous for both the citizens and the future generations.  

“It is far too dangerous. Firstly, it means that for 100 years, two radioactive convoys will cross France every day to come to Bure. And secondly, the safety of the site cannot be guaranteed when such long lifespans are involved. What will happen if, one day, these 200,000 ‘parcels” resurface, whilst they are still radioactive?” says Jean-Marc Fleury, a local official from the Grand Est region.

France’s Green Movement also says that it is time to put the project aside, warning the French government against passing any law by force before the upcoming presidential election.