Question 37382 — natural disasters

Summary

Mr. Jean-Paul Lecoq draws the attention of the Minister of Ecological Transition to the presence of underground cavities, particularly in Seine-Maritime, a consequence of the nature of its subsoil and the past exploitation of marl pits. The soils of sedimentary plateaus, as is the case in this territory, are acidic and easily destructed by the action of rain. For several centuries, the addition of chalk made it possible to correct these defects and improve agricultural productivity. This “tidal range” practice has led to a massive increase in underground manual extraction sites. However, these small quarries, called “marnières”, have been abandoned, almost never filled in and very poorly listed. The number of marnières potentially present in Seine-Maritime was 120,000 in 2017. The risk of sudden and progressive collapse assimilates the marnières legally at a natural risk. In built-up areas, their collapse causes significant material damage, threatening the lives of occupants during these accidents. Cavity treatment work generates significant costs, as is the case in Saint-Jouin-Bruneval. This town was the victim of such a collapse, fortunately in the absence of the owners. However, they now face the worry of not being able to repair the damage to the extent that the sums to be mobilized for the survey are 20,000 euros, and 98,000 euros for filling. If the Seine-Maritime departmental council can intervene up to 20% after agreement of the commission for the survey, the State, for its part, intervenes through the Major Risk Prevention Fund, known as the “Barnier fund”, whose maximum support is 30% for the realization protection and prevention work. Despite this study aid and similar compensation, the situation of victim owners remains worrying and extremely costly. The management of proven disasters and situations where the presence of a cavity next to a building is certain remains subject to improvement. As this is one of the rare natural risks that can be completely controlled, the MP draws the attention of Ms. the minister on the solutions that exist at the state level. Firstly, a necessary strengthening of aid from the “Barnier” fund to 80% would make it possible to support individuals in carrying out protection or prevention work, as the general council for the environment and sustainable development proposed in 2019. Secondly, an exemption from VAT could be considered for work carried out to discover and fill the gaps as well as restore the impacted real estate. Thirdly, the possibility for owners to access a zero-interest loan would effectively complete this arsenal. He would like to know his opinion on this subject.

Machine translation from French. The official text remains authoritative.

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