About 1,000 people formed a human chain in Écaussinnes on Sunday to protest against the Boucle du Hainaut power line project, particularly plans to install 22 extra-high-voltage pylons in the municipality.
The demonstration was organised by the local citizens’ group Les Survoltés, which says it has been campaigning regularly in Écaussinnes for the past six years.
Protesters denounced what they described as the major impacts of Elia’s infrastructure project. The Boucle du Hainaut would create a new 380 kV overhead electricity link along a route of about 85 kilometres between Avelgem, in West Flanders, and Courcelles, in Hainaut.
The planned corridor would affect 14 municipalities.
Philippe Janssens, spokesperson for Les Survoltés, said the group was aware that a proposal put forward by the Revolht collective to bury the line as direct current was unlikely to succeed.
However, he said Les Survoltés were pursuing a different objective. Their priority, he said, is to secure a route with the lowest possible impact, particularly by limiting the line’s passage over homes and reducing damage to the landscape.
In Écaussinnes, Mr Janssens said, the proposed route raised serious concerns because it would pass through entire residential neighbourhoods.
The group is calling for the use of existing corridors, even if that would make the project longer and more expensive than the 85-kilometre route proposed by Elia.
Mr Janssens said these historical corridors often already contain 75 or 150 kV lines, which could be buried and replaced by the Boucle du Hainaut overhead line. He added that these corridors also benefit from planning permissions already obtained by Elia.
He also said that, six years ago, Elia had presented route options that followed existing corridors.
