This neighborhood, located at the far end of the bay across from the François islets, has been one of the areas most affected by beachings in recent years and is one of the most difficult to access for trash collection. Following the plan launched by the prefect in early May ((See the Sargassum emergency plan), a strip of land was cleared along the waterfront to allow the machines to access the decomposing seaweed.
The subprefect of Le Marin, Corinne Blanchot-Prosper, came on May 24 to observe the first seaweed cleanup, which had been eagerly awaited by exasperated local residents (See testimonials).
Martinique 2030: Where will the seaweed we collect here be stored?
Corinne Blanchot-Prosper: The city has a storage site near the technical services department, but when the seaweed is fresher, the company Holdex, located in Le François, collects it (see the article on recycling). There are therefore two options for Le François.
M2030: The debris that has washed ashore in recent years has never affected the François islets as much as it has this year. Yet they have now been impacted, and this is an area with heavy tourist activity. Are there any plans to clean them up?
Corinne Blanchot-Prosper: I can’t tell you, because we’re working with the local governments, and the response plan is in their hands. Of course, we’re supporting them and we’re out in the field working alongside them. There are a great many affected sites. Priority has been given to inhabited areas, even though we’re well aware that tourist sites must also be taken into account—such as Pointe Faula—and the town of Sainte Anne has invested heavily in Anse Michel. However, for the islets of Le François, there is no response plan yet because we still need to focus on the inhabited coastal areas.
M2030: Have you made any progress on devices designed to stop algae before it washes ashore—such as floating barriers, chopping devices, or at-sea collection systems?
Corinne Blanchot-Prosper: It’s true that we hear a lot about all this, but these systems are still being evaluated, just as they are in Guadeloupe. ADEME is working on both islands, and we have a comprehensive analysis. As for the barriers, they’re currently being tested in Le Marigot and Le Robert, and there’s a project in Le Diamant that we’ll be reviewing with the mayor, in collaboration with the Maritime Directorate. This could be a solution either to stop the algae or to divert it and bring it to a site where it could be easily collected.
M2030: The Prefect assured everyone that, from now on, the seaweed would be collected before it decomposes, as much as possible.
Corinne Blanchot-Prosper: Yes, actually, it’s the layout of the sites that makes it difficult to respond quickly. The City of Le François only has complicated sites, and we can’t be everywhere at once. As you’ve seen, here we first had to create a travel lane before we could begin work. There’s currently a second project site in Le François, in the Presqu’Île neighborhood, using the excavator loaned by the City of Lamentin; it’s important to highlight this intermunicipal partnership.
M2030: In areas heavily affected like this one, with very high H₂S levels—up to 5 ppm—has there been any discussion of evacuating residents who are overexposed?
Corinne Blanchot-Prosper: Well, no, it hasn’t come up yet, since these levels are, after all, threshold values set by the High Authority for Public Health. 5 ppm doesn’t mean there’s a constant health risk, but it is an important threshold—and, moreover, odor nuisances occur even before these thresholds are reached. We’re treating this threshold as a top priority; that’s why we installed something important at this site—this walkway—to allow access to the algae. This site, in my district, was the most affected and the highest priority. We had to figure out how to proceed.
M2030: Why do the general public and public opinion in general feel that the authorities took a long time to react and to realize the severity of this problem?
Corinne Blanchot-Prosper: Arrivals have been heavy since 2018; there were some before that as well, and then nothing for two years… Perhaps we didn’t look far enough ahead at the time to ask ourselves: If this happens again, how will we respond? Today, we’ve tackled this problem more head-on, recognizing that while it’s certainly a natural phenomenon—and it occurred on a massive scale in 2018—we can expect it to happen again. That’s what we told ourselves about Frégate—this conveyor belt might come in handy in the future too, so it’s worth the investment.
M2030: The Prefect mentioned an international conference on this topic.
Corinne Blanchot-Prosper: Yes, the prefect of Martinique, who serves as the regional prefect, has been tasked by the government with organizing an expanded Caribbean conference. Extensive preparatory work is underway for a conference in October. It is very important to see how other Caribbean countries are affected, how they are responding, and what measures they are implementing. The idea is also to build on existing knowledge and response capabilities. In fact, ADEME has tasked its staff with assessing what is being done in the Dominican Republic to determine whether that system could be effective and suitable for us. We need to take a broader view that extends beyond the island.
M2030: And how about taking a look at the causes, too?
Corinne Blanchot-Prosper: So, of course, this is an issue that’s handled and addressed at the national level. There are undoubtedly many causes, but I’ll leave it to the experts to delve deeper into both the causes and how we might take preventive action.
Interview by Nathalie Laulé
See also the measurements taken by Madinin’Air in this neighborhood at this link:
