Mont Blanc Tunnel scheduled to reopen as of mid-February :
Get ready for D-day!
Before the closure of the tunnel due to an accident in March1999 which killed
39 people, 2'000 to 3'000 trucks crossed and polluted the valleys at the foot
of Europe's highest mountain every day
.
Now, at the very beginning of
2002, the International Year of the Mountains
,
the Italian and French governments plan to give the go ahead for
once again transforming the Mont Blanc into a noisy, polluted valley
dedicated to road freight transport rather than a living space for all.
A few facts
the now
"safest tunnel in the world” is just 7 m large
and so low that a truck got stuck in the entry during one of the first
security tests…
97% voted NO to the return of the trucks
in a local referendum in August 2001
141 international and national organisations from all over Europe support
the fight against the return of the trucks
more than 260'000 people have signed the petition
against the return of the trucks
tourism
in the French Mont Blanc valley is
on a complete upturn
ever since the tunnel was closed
Now WHY reopen this tunnel if
all the freight transported that went via the Mont Blanc road
before the accident
could be transferred to railway lines
in the region if the governments would only upgrade them (very cheap but not as
sexy as announcing a new high-speed railway it seems…)
1/3 of all trucks drive around empty
a large part of trucks transports is
absolutely pointless and absurd
:
*scrap metal transported to Italy just because their environmental legislation
there is not as strict,
* milk driven from Bavaria to Greece to transform it into yoghurt and then the
yoghurts is driven to Bavaria where it is sold as Greek yoghurt
shrimps from Danmark are transported to Marocco to peel them and then returned
– by truck
etc. etc.
We think it's time the governments
stop talking
about sustainable transport and
start acting
.
First step
: Leave the Mont Blanc tunnel closed for trucks.
Only alternative step
: step down.
In order to make politicians acting sensibly a little bit easier we will stage
a massive demonstration on the day of the planned reopening of the Mont Blanc
Tunnel to trucks. We count on your help to preserve that beautiful and symbolic
valley from pollution and destruction. Join us!
Get prepared and ready because we will probably only be able to tell you the
exact date at a relatively short notice
(the transport ministers will announce it as late as possible to try to make
our mobilisation as difficult as possible).
D-day might be postponed if unforeseen security problems arise (has happened in
the past) or if the governments finally understand that opening the tunnel to
trucks is a very, very bad idea (has not happened in the past but they might
realise what awaits them if they try…).
The important thing is that we are getting prepared NOW so that we are ready at
any time.
IMPORTANT NOTE: We believe in the power of the common energy of people who want
to find a peaceful solution for a conflict and strictly oppose all violence.
For any further information you can
call me at 0033-6-09 64 78 91 (Don't hesitate to leave a message on my phone, I
will call back as soon as possible)
have a look at the
ARSMB
website (Organisation for the protection of the Mont
Blanc)
where we will post any up-date information available at a certain moment.