Waste Management Woes in Périgord Noir
Well, if you thought your weekly trip to the rubbish tip was a circus, welcome to Sarlat and Périgord Noir, where the municipal bigwigs are debating waste management like it’s the final of a reality show! It’s a debate that’s been more animated than a Saturday night television sketch, and boy, does it have the potential for farce!
“In 2018, we decided to change the tax,” says Jean-Jacques de Peretti, the big cheese himself, the mayor of Sarlat and president of the intercommunality. But hang on, folks! Four years later, they’re still waiting for their curtain call. It seems like they’ve put their tax changes in the ‘to-do’ pile right next to that New Year’s resolution to hit the gym!
Now, a reminder for those in the back: Périgord Noir has 57 municipalities and 42,000 inhabitants. That’s a lot of opinions, a lot of rubbish, and a lot of wondering how to deal with both!
Brive, an Obvious Solution?
The president lays out three tantalizing options like a buffet at an all-you-can-eat restaurant. Option one: keep Sictom going strong and roll out the household waste collection tax. Option two: join the SMD3, the department’s club of wasteful extravagance. And option three? Oh, get cozy with Brive. Yes, let’s just pick up and move — because if you can’t find a solution, why not find a new geographical location!
“Sictom cannot function while 56% of its budget is absorbed by the SMD3.”
Don’t get too cozy, though! Jérôme Peyrat, the chief magistrate of La Roque-Gageac, isn’t quite ready to pop the champagne. “I have a reservation,” he admits, channeling his inner hotel manager. It seems they’re in dire need of some “comparing notes” before they decide which way to take the waste dump train!
But let’s not kid ourselves. Brive’s looking more inviting with each messy bit of incomprehension. Why stick around when you can negotiate a sugar daddy relationship with a neighboring commune while telling SMD3 to shove it?
Show Muscles
Talk about flexing those political muscles! “We want a unanimous decision before the end of the year,” declares de Peretti, presumably with a dramatic pause worthy of Shakespeare. Meanwhile, Jérôme Peyrat is attempting to play matchmaker, arguing that voluntary contribution points could make them more attractive in the waste management dating game.
How romantic! “It’s not expensive, but there is volume!” Just imagine the amount of charm these elected officials are trying to muster as they wrestle with the staggering fact that summer months bring in 40% of their refuse! They’re out here suggesting floating flirtations with municipal unions like it’s speed dating for rubbish.
“If we are still punctured, we leave.”
And let’s not forget the latest theater: They recently donated another €250,000 to the cause. That’s right, folks. Nothing says ‘compromise’ like dropping a quarter of a million euros before abandoning ship!
Water and Sanitation
Just when you thought things couldn’t get murkier, here comes the cherry on top: management of water and sanitation. “We might just take charge,” teases de Peretti. Freedom is ringing, but will they be ready to handle the waves of… wait for it… decisions?
So there you have it, folks! A comical cocktail of frustration, indecision, and the classic blame game right from the heart of Périgord Noir. Just like stepping on a soap, it’s slippery, it’s a spectacle, and it’s nothing short of entertaining!
Again and again the waste. For several years, the debate has continued to agitate the municipal and community councils of Sarlat and Périgord Noir.
“In 2018, it was decided to change the tax towards an incentive fee method,” underlines Jean-Jacques de Peretti, president of the intercommunality and mayor of Sarlat. But we are not ready to implement it. And I remind you that 56% of the budget of the Intercommunal Union for the collection and treatment of household waste [NDLR : Sictom] are absorbed by the Dordogne Departmental Waste Union [SMD3]. »
As a reminder, in Périgord Noir, this represents 57 municipalities and 42,000 inhabitants.
Brive, an obvious solution?
“We have three possibilities,” continues the president. The first is to maintain the independence of Sictom by implementing the household waste collection tax. [Teom] or the incentive household waste collection tax [Teomi]. Second solution, join SMD3. Finally, third possibility, get closer to Brive”, the Corrèze neighbor.
According to the councilor, a large part of the other intercommunalities of the Pays du Périgord Noir would be in favor of a rapprochement with the Intercommunal Syndicate for the Collection and Treatment of Household Waste (Sirtom) of the Brive Region and would take deliberations in this meaning.
“Sictom cannot function while 56% of its budget is absorbed by the SMD3”
Jérôme Peyrat, the chief magistrate of La Roque-Gageac and president of Sictom du Périgord Noir, wishes to qualify: “For the moment, I have a reservation,” he admits. We are missing certain elements of comparison. That said, there are good indicators which suggest that the application of Teomi would reduce operating costs. Leaving with Brive would mean withdrawing from SMD3 as a waste treatment union. »
The president goes further: “If we take this deliberation, it is a strong signal sent to the SMD3. We are determined. Sictom cannot function while 56% of its budget is absorbed by this union. We don’t decide on rates. » A new meeting of community elected officials should allow them to decide on this project.
Show muscles
“We want a unanimous decision before the end of the year,” points out Jean-Jacques de Peretti. Another argument put forward by Jérôme Peyrat is the achievements already made at the intercommunal level: “The voluntary contribution points allow us to be “marriageable”, he smiles. It’s not expensive, but there is volume. 40% of the tonnage is carried out during the summer months. For some, this is difficult to understand. » For François Coq, elected EELV in Sarlat, the president’s presentation is “insufficient at the financial level to make a decision”.
Response from Jean-Jacques de Peretti: “It is a tactical positioning of principle. The goal is to make SMD3 understand that if we are still punctured, we leave. We recently donated another 250,000 euros. »
Water and sanitation
Another decision to make quickly is the management of water and sanitation. “The freedom to transfer skills to these subjects will be returned to municipalities and intermunicipalities,” reveals Jean-Jacques de Peretti. So, either we continue as before, or Sarlat-Périgord Noir takes over the jurisdiction. I will leave it to you to discuss it within your respective Councils. »
