Walloon communes take stricter measures against scout camp noise

Belgium is famous for its scouts, who fill the country’s parks and green areas every weekend. But sometimes, especially in quiet areas, this is too much.

More than 70 camps were organised in Couvin last summer and autumn, a small town in the south of Namur province near the French border, and the resulting noise has angered local residents.

In response, and following previous actions, the town’s municipal council has voted on new regulations setting strict limits.

These include rules setting a maximum of eight camps per campsite, a minimum distance of 200 metres between a camp and a residential property and at least 100 metres between two camps.

In addition, Couvin is quadrupling the tourist tax for camps from €0.25 to €1 per person per night. The municipality said that this was necessary as the nuisance caused by camps, particularly near the tranquil village of Pesche has become too much for locals.

Couvin is not the only municipality in the Namur region to take action. Nearby Viroinval has also voted in favour of measures including increasing the tourist tax, with the aim of stopping the annoyances caused by excess camp noise.

“This summer, we had eight camps around our house, with noise, dogs barking all the time and music every day until 3.00 or 4.00 in the morning,” one Couvin resident told RTBF.

“We are not against the camps, we don’t want them banned, but we want to limit them. We have lived here for 13 years, and before that there weren’t so many.

"It was even nice to take part in their games from time to time. But the number of camps has only increased and so has the nuisance."

While scout groups understand the need for supervised scouts and peace and quiet for villagers, Clara Huys, a leader at Dave scout group near Namur, said: “Such strong and restrictive measures will make it even more difficult to find campsites.

“We’re going to have even fewer places to camp, and we’re going to have to pay more. Ten years ago, a meadow cost €250. Now it is difficult to find one for €1,000.”

Photo: Jean-Pol Grandmont/Wikimedia. Licensed under Creative Commons