Despite the controversy, it happened. Canua Island, a private floating beach, docked at the port of La Seyne-sur-Mer (Var) on Monday, after leaving Sunday by sea its construction site in Italy.
"The ship Canua Island is actually docked in La Seyne-sur-Mer, in order to make a visit of the safety commission," said a spokesman for the Maritime Prefecture of the Mediterranean, whose headquarters are located in Toulon. Asked by the news agency, a Canua Island official declined to comment.
At the beginning of May, the Canua communication agency had indicated that the ship should receive "in May in Italy the passage of the safety and compliance commission". The promoters of the project had indicated at the end of March that they expected a start of activity "in May".
"Refuse this ecological aberration"
A unique private floating beach in France, Canua Island is actually a 1,750 m2 platform on a motor trimaran. After its passage to La Seyne-sur-Mer, it should anchor off Mandelieu-la-Napoule (Alpes-Maritimes), 600 m from the coast. This floating beach will be able to accommodate on board, against payment, up to 350 people, transported by shuttles. They have access to an on-site restaurant, a lounge bar and a freshwater swimming pool.
The project was imagined and developed by Marc Audineau, former world number 1 dinghy and former Olympic athlete, and by Fijian Tony Philp, former windsurfing world champion, who has already created a similar platform, "Cloud 9", in Fiji.
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Supported by the town hall of Mandelieu-la-Napoule, the initiative - which promises the creation of a hundred jobs and has already begun to recruit - is strongly contested by elected officials and by the Syllau association, which denounces the risks of damage to the environment. One petition has already garnered more than 7,000 signatures. Syllau's lawyer, Eric Lanzarone, indicated that "as soon as the prefect has authorized the anchorage, this decision will be the subject of an interim procedure before the administrative court".
While Canua Island is however partly financed by the Public Investment Bank (BPI), as part of a partnership with the South region, the Macronist president of the region, Renaud Muselier, said that "we must refuse this ecological aberration". The project "arouses a circumspection to which I subscribe", had replied mid-March the Minister of Ecological Transition, Christophe Béchu.
