A tourist site closed due to polluting barrels found on site

We come there to climb, admire the ocean, take a good dose of sand in the sneakers … Therefore, But this time, it’s another atmosphere at the Pilat dune. In addition, The most famous heap of sand in France is talked about. Moreover, not for his breathtaking views, but because of a funny treasure buried under his golden slopes. Consequently, Result: part of the site is now Access prohibitedand the time is serious for this jewel of the Aquitaine coast. Similarly, The authorities are on the war footing, and the dune rings the alert.

tourist site closed due polluting

A discovery that is stain in the middle of a tourist season

Each summer is the same chorus: vacationers are storming the pilat dune, shorts on the hips, cooler in one hand, children in the other. Meanwhile, But this year, the decor has changed. Furthermore, On the sidelines of the beaten track. on the side of Sector called “de Sabloney”the technical services fell on a real bone … or rather, rusty metal barrelshidden under the sand, accompanied by plastics and other waste not frankly worthy of a postcard.

The catch? These cans did not contain beach memories. but Pollutants, including hydrocarbons, according to the first analysis results, according to France Bleu. A discovery not really harmless for this classified and protected site, located at the entrance to the Arcachon basin. Alerted. the mixed union of the Grande Dune du tourist site closed due polluting Pilat, site manager, has not procrastinated: immediate closure of the sector concerned, and this “until further notice”. No luck for paragliding people too. the overview is prohibited – just to prevent an improvised landing from turning to the eco -friendly crash.

And all that falls in the middle of the summer season. when the dune reaches peaks of attendance, bordering on the 2 million visitors per year. Good news. however: the rest of the site remains accessibleand you can always climb the 160 steps of the large staircase to admire the view. But this hiccup recalls one thing: even the most beautiful wonders of nature are not immune to a dirty passive.

Toxic heritage and current investigation under sand grains

So where do these polluting cans come from? To this question. no official answer yet, but Everything suggests that this waste date from another time, probably tourist site closed due polluting before the 1990s, at a time when environmental management was not really popular. Perhaps from old embankments. or even wild landfills today missing, this waste would have been slowly swallowed by the incessant movements of the dune … until their surprise reappearance.

This is what the teams of the Conservatory of the coastal. the town hall of La Teste-de-Buchwho are now working hand in hand to identify the extent of the pollution, mark the area and launch a cleaning operation in good and due form. Specialists will have to assess the risks for wildlife. flora, and water tables, because the pilat dune is not only a postcard decor: it is also a fragile ecosystemrefuge of many protected species.

And as much to say that the site promises to be full -bodied: it will be necessary to evacuate the waste without damaging the site more, while tourist site closed due polluting limiting natural erosion of this sand giant which advances each year towards the forest. The work will also have to be done discreetly. so as not to transform the area into a post-apocalyptic science fiction scene in the middle of the holidays.

But this case above all raises a real question: How many natural sites still drag the pans of the past Under their immaculate appearances? For environmental defenders. the Dune du Pilat sends a clear message: what is buried always ends up resurfacing, and it will be necessary to redouble vigilance.