10/30/2007
The Transat Jacques Vabre fleet show their environmental credentials
Global warming, carbon tax, environmental protection, energy saving? Some of the competitors in the Transat Jacques Vabre, the eighth edition of which is placed under the sign of sustainable development, offer us their thoughts, comments and proposals.
«Have sailors suddenly become sensitive to the question because their sponsors believe it to be a popular idea or is it because the new generation is more interested in environmental issues?» This delicate question was raised by Arnaud Boissières, the skipper of Akena Vérandas.
Arnaud Boissières thinks the solution would be to «step up the effort from the very first sail» in sailing schools: «We can only protect the planet if we educate people to respect nature and others.»
For Jeanne Grégoire, co-skipper on Roxy, environmental protection involves concrete measures. «We really must recycle our waste! On board Roxy, for example we sort our waste using the leeches of sails. It's a start, but I can feel people around me have become more and more aware of the problem over the past couple of years,» added Jeanne.
Christophe Lebas, the new co-skipper of the 40-foot, Groupe Partouche, believes there is a huge lot of work to do, but feels it is beginning to happen. «People in the marine community have become more and more aware recently, but there is still a lot of work to do to make everyone aware. The amount of rubbish in the sector is still way too high. On a personal level, I have begun to pay attention: I no longer chuck my cigarette butts everywhere. I know that isn't much, but it's a beginning,» smiled the skipper from Normandy.
Pierre Van Den Broek, co-skipper aboard Nim Interim, Lalou Roucayrol's new fifty-foot trimaran, pointed out his helm seats, usually made of oil based products: «Lalou wanted to do his bit, hence these seats made of natural flax resin.» Pierre, because of his former job, is naturally very pleased with this development: «I ran a company for years that worked on the environment, offering advice to firms, both in France and abroad. There is clearly greater awareness today: but we have to do better and go further,» considers Pierre Van Den Broek.
For Benoît Parnaudeau, (Jardin Bio-Prévoir), (40-foot) we need to be cautious about all the announcements, but believes this new enthusiasm for green issues requires society to be clear about its responsibilities.
The 60-foot monohull, Cervin (Yannick Bestaven-Rona Guérin) is a good example of this development, as the project was designed in the very short term to get the onboard electronics working simply using green energy.
The yachtsman from Le Havre, Roger Langevin, on the 50-foot trimaran, Negocéane, shows some common sense: «First of all we mustn't lose our sails overboard, as may have happened in the past! How many plastic bottles are there out there for every foresail?»
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