The lead on the roof of Notre Dame: Parisians are up in arms against President Macron's plans

Reconstruction in Paris - The lead on the roof of Notre Dame: Parisians are up in arms against President Macron's plans

It would be too good to be true if everything continued to run so smoothly. One year before the reopening of Notre-Dame in Paris, which was damaged by a major fire in April 2019 and is scheduled for December 8, 2024, there are calls for construction work to be interrupted. The reason: the restoration of the roof, which was completely destroyed in the inferno, with lead, which is considered harmful to health. In the first few months of next year, the lead covering of the roof truss, which had been completely finished by then, is to begin.

French President Emmanuel Macron plans to visit the construction site on Friday. A visit that will be overshadowed by the revived protest against the use of lead to cover the roof of the cathedral.

Installing lead in the middle of Paris, which is responsible for the deaths of five million people worldwide, means taking responsibility for poisoning the population, warned environment senator Anne Souyris on X (formerly Twitter).

J'ai demandé au Gouvernement la suspension du chantier de la cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris.

Aucune évaluation des risques sanitaires de l'installation de plus de 500 tonnes de plomb sur la cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris n'a été conduite par l'Etat.

Pourtant, le plomb tue 5… pic.twitter.com/x2sDci6pwC

— Anne Souyris (@annesouyris) November 30, 2023

In her tweet, the former deputy mayor of Paris, who is responsible for health, claimed that no study had been carried out on the health risks of using more than 500 tons of lead in the Notre-Dame. At the end of November, she therefore joined environmental and health organizations in calling for a protest on the forecourt of the Parisian landmark: they are demanding that construction work be halted.

Government tries to allay health concerns

There have been concerns about the reconstruction of Notre-Dame with lead for some time, particularly in connection with water run-off. In a statement issued in January 2021, the High Council of Public Health estimated that Notre-Dame's roof alone, consisting of 1326 panels, would emit around 21 kilograms of lead per year in run-off water. In April 2023, the Paris Public Prosecutor's Office opened a judicial investigation for "endangering others" after several families and associations, who have been warning about the health risks associated with lead since the fire, filed a lawsuit.

"Rebâtir Notre-Dame de Paris", the public institution responsible for the restoration of the cathedral under state supervision, claims to have investigated the lead issue with the utmost care. Its director, Philippe Jost, assured the French press that the cathedral would benefit from an "innovative approach to environmental progress" to reduce pollution from rainwater run-off on the roofs. In addition, the building's fire protection system has been reviewed and optimized.

The Elysée Palace also confirmed that all precautionary measures have been and are being taken. "Rebâtir Notre-Dame de Paris" will remain in dialogue with the environmental and health organizations. In any case, there was no need to take such extreme measures as interrupting construction work.

Macron backs lead roof despite risks

When the church went up in flames on the night of 15 April 2019, over 400 tons of lead contained in the roof and spire went up in smoke. The lead dust settled in large quantities on sidewalks, bridges, in public gardens and schoolyards and on the windowsills of residents living near the cathedral.

After the fire, it took around four months for the area around Notre-Dame to be thoroughly cleaned. As the health authorities explained at the time, twelve children were found to have elevated levels of lead in their blood. The toxic heavy metal is considered carcinogenic, mutagenic and toxic to reproduction.

Despite the health risks, France's head of state Emmanuel Macron decided in July 2020, 15 months after the devastating fire, to rebuild the cathedral identically: with a roof truss made of solid oak wood - 2,000 oaks were felled for this - and a roof covering and ornaments made of lead.

Reconstruction still takes years

So far, the reconstruction has progressed surprisingly well. The vault that was pierced by the fall of the spire has been completed, as has the renovation of the north and south gables of the transept, which were damaged by the fire. The stained glass windows restored by the Cologne Cathedral Construction Company have been back for months. And the cathedral's art treasures that were saved from the flames were exhibited in a comprehensive exhibition at the Cité de l'architecture et du patrimoine at the beginning of the year.

Since the end of November, the outline of the spire, which is a prominent feature of the cathedral, has also been visible again behind scaffolding. The 96-metre-high crossing tower collapsed shortly before 8 p.m. on April 15. Its collapse became a symbol of the fire disaster.

Although the reopening of the site is scheduled for December 8, 2024, a lot of work is still planned, in particular the restoration of the buttresses of the nave and choir. According to Elysée, the project will not be fully completed until the end of the decade, between 2029 and 2030.