Farming couple must move, first people displaced in Normandy by climate change
The couple are the first in the region to be forcibly displaced by encroaching sea levels
Areas of France with sandy coastlines are especially at risk of erosion
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A farming couple in northern France are being forced to move home due to increased flooding risk, in what is being described as the first case of climate change displacement in the region.
David and Claudine Lecordier live in Montmartin-sur-Mer in Manche (Normandy), but authorities ordered them to leave their farm due to the fast approach of the sea, and increased risk of flooding.
The order was first issued in 2019, but the couple is only now definitively moving out, after five years of negotiation and attempts to avoid the move.
Their property has been bought by the coastline protection agency le Conservatoire du littoral, and is scheduled for demolition to prevent further sea damage.
“We’ve had five years of doubts, difficulties and hopes, but we've accepted the conditions,” said Mr Lecordier to BFM Normandie. The couple is the first in the region to be forcibly displaced due to rising coast levels.
Read also: Coastal erosion: Hundreds of French homes risk becoming uninhabitable
‘A very emotional moment’
The couple is now set to move elsewhere, and the family has plans to open a campsite with their son-in-law Jérôme. Yet, Jérôme explained that the soon-to-be demolished farm holds many memories for the family.
“I knew my great-grandfather here, and my grandfather who died recently,” he said. “I spent a lot of holidays here with them. So it's a very emotional moment.”
“When we set up [he farm] in 1993, I couldn't see any sand,” said Mr Lecordier to Actu.fr. Today, the sand is only 100 metres away. “If the government hadn't mentioned relocation, I'd never have had the intention of leaving. My life was here,” he said.
Thousands of homes at risk
Authorities in the area have stopped issuing building permits for construction close to the sea, as it increasingly approaches the land.
“Our duty is to protect existing buildings, and also not to exacerbate the problem by building more,” said mayor of Montmartin-sur-Mer, Bruno Quesnel.
A number of coastlines in France are particularly vulnerable to encroaching sea, and the accompanying winds and high tides. This is partly caused by natural phenomena, but also exacerbated by rising sea levels and human-related climate change.
Read also: Online map shows which French cities may be submerged by sea in future
Read also: COP26: New map shows 20% of French coast at risk from erosion
By 2028, a total of 1,046 homes could be at risk, estimates the Centre d'études et d'expertise sur les risques, l'environnement, la mobilité et l'aménagement. It has also said that by 2050, this is set to increase to 5,208 - including almost 2,000 second homes.
Additionally, an increase in the number of natural disasters and weather-related damage claims is contributing to a hike in home insurance costs in France, which are expected to continue rising in the coming years.
