Auzat

Auzat
The Rue des Pyrénées, in Auzat
Auzat
Location within Midi-Pyrénées region Auzat
Coordinates: 42°46′02″N 1°28′51″E / 42.7672°N 1.4808°E / 42.7672; 1.4808Coordinates: 42°46′02″N 1°28′51″E / 42.7672°N 1.4808°E / 42.7672; 1.4808
Country	France
Region	Midi-Pyrénées
Department	Ariège
Arrondissement	Foix
Canton	Vicdessos
Intercommunality	Auzat-Vicdessos
Government
• Mayor (2014–2020)	Jean-Pierre Ruffé
Area¹	162.74 km² (62.83 sq mi)
Population (2010)²	582
• Density	3.6/km² (9.3/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	09030 / 09220
Elevation	720–3,143 m (2,362–10,312 ft) (avg. 737 m or 2,418 ft)
¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. ² Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Auzat is a French commune in the Ariège department in the Midi-Pyrénées region of south-western France.

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Auzatois or Auzatoises.^[1]

The commune has been awarded one flower by the National Council of Towns and Villages in Bloom in the Competition of cities and villages in Bloom.^[2]

Geography

The Pica d'Estats

Auzat is located some 45 km south by south-west of Pamiers and 40 km north by north-west of Andorra la Vella. Its south-western border is the border between France and Spain and its south-eastern border is the border between France and Andorra. Access to the commune is by road D8 which branches from the D18 at Vicdessos and goes to the village then continues south to access the dam at Etang de Soulcem. Due to the extremely rugged terrain there is no access to Spain or Andorra from the commune. Its highest point is the Pica d'Estats (3143 m), which is located in the Montcalm Massif, exactly on the Spanish border.^[3]

Many streams rise in the south of the commune and flow north in two parallel main streams - the Ruisseau de la Coume de Subra and the Ruisseau de Mounicou. The Ruisseau de la Coume de Subra joins the Ruisseau de l'Artigue flowing east to join the Ruisseau de Mounicou which continues north to the village where it becomes the Ruisseau de Vicdessos then continues east to join the Ariege at Tarascon-sur-Ariège. There are also many lakes in the south of the commune with the Etang de Soulcem being the largest.

Hamlets and places in the commune

Emperrot
L'Artigue
Marc
Saleix
Olbier
Artiès
Mounicou

Neighbouring communes and villages>

Le Port

Tarascon-sur-Ariege

Aulus-les-Bains

Vicdessos

Auzat

Tavascan

Arinsal

El Serrat

Environment

The commune has a rich environment in terms of Wilderness and ecological potential but industrialization has left traces: in particular the disused Pechiney Aluminium Smelter (closed in 2003) left heavy environmental consequences.

The smelter was ranked 2 under Directive 96/82/EC (Seveso). The plant had an internal landfill site of 1.8 hectares located several kilometres from the smelter site at a place called Massada on the border with Vicdessos commune. This discharge area, as well as the groundwater and soil that supported the plant operations, are polluted by various pollutants including fluorides, cyanides, hydrocarbons, arsenic, aluminium, and barium.^[4]

History

Auzat south of the Etang de Soulcem

Onost had the first group housing in the Middle Ages with the Church of Saint-Vincent of Onost mentioned in the 11th century
Auzat village was founded in the 11th or 12th century. It was a village grouped around the present Rue du Fort and the Rue du Rocher
12th-15th centuries: domination by Montreal-de-Sos, castle of the Counts of Foix
1907: Construction of the Pechiney Smelter to manufacture ingots and billets of aluminum
1908: construction of a central hydroelectric station to supply electricity to the Pechiney smelter
1911: opening of the Tramway de Tarascon-sur-Ariège à Auzat
1939: The Catastrophe of Izourt - an avalanche that killed 28 people^[5]
1990: Implementation of the Montcalm Water Company
2003: closure of the Pechiney smelter
2007: Opening of the House of heritage
2011: a new athletics stadium was inaugurated in the presence of President of the FFA, Bernard Amsalem

Administration

Auzat Fountain

List of Successive Mayors^[6]

From	To	Name	Party	Position
1867	1871	Victorin Galy		General Councillor
1985	2014	Bernard Piquemal	PS	General Councillor
2014	2020	Jean Pierre Ruffé		President of the Community of Communes

(Not all data is known)

Twinning

Since 2003, the Auzat valley and Vicdessos have developed special links with Italy, especially with the Veneto and Friuli regions which were the origins of the victims of the Izourt Dam disaster in Auzat that had resulted in the deaths of 29 Italians and 3 Frenchmen on 24 March 1939. The Ricordate Association, with the support of elected officials, regularly organizes events and commemorations for the victims' families to honour their dead and to better understand the circumstances of the accident.^[7]

Demography

In 2010 the commune had 582 inhabitants. The evolution of the number of inhabitants is known from the population censuses conducted in the commune since 1793. From the 21st century, a census of communes with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants is held every five years, unlike larger communes that have a sample survey every year.^{[Note 1]}

Evolution of the Population (See database)

1793	1800	1806	1821	1831	1836	1841	1846	1851
1,255	1,364	1,867	1,750	1,875	1,774	1,745	1,749	1,693

1856	1861	1866	1872	1876	1881	1886	1891	1896
1,643	1,615	1,519	1,435	1,330	1,154	1,261	1,273	1,064

1901	1906	1911	1921	1926	1931	1936	1946	1954
1,117	1,049	1,268	997	1,012	952	778	1,383	1,068

1962	1968	1975	1982	1990	1999	2006	2010	-
970	949	798	847	760	666	593	582	-

Sources : Ldh/EHESS/Cassini until 1962, INSEE database from 1968 (population without double counting and municipal population from 2006)

The Etang de Bassiès

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

The Chateau of Montreal-de-Sos is located on a rocky escarpment overlooking the hamlet of Olbier
The Vicdessos Valley
The Vicdessos Lakes

A bridge on the GR 10 across the Ruisseau de Bassiès at 1590m
The Etang de Canalbonne
The Etang de Bassiès and Mérens horses
Inside the Chateau of Montreal-de-Sos
The Col du Saleich in 1882
Auzat Bridge in 1882
Mont Calm in 1882

Religious heritage

The commune has several religious buildings:

The Cemetery Chapel has a Statue of Saint Bartholomew (15th century) which is registered as an historical object^[8]

The Church of Auxat has three items that are registered as historical objects:
- A Chandelier (19th century)^[9]
- A Ciborium (19th century)^[10]
- A Monstrance (19th century)^[11]

The Church of Olbier has one item that is registered as an historical object:
- A Collection Plate (16th century)^[12]

The Church of Saleix has many items that are registered as historical objects:
- A Chalice (17th century)^[13]
- A Tabernacle (18th century)^[14]
- 2 Statues: Virgin and Child, Saint Joseph (18th century)^[15]
- Group sculpture: Virgin of Pity (16th century)^[16]
- A Collection Plate: the Annunciation (16th century)^[17]
- A Collection Plate: Adam and Eve (16th century)^[18]
- 2 Statues: Saint Roch, Saint John (18th century)^[19]
- A Chandelier (19th century)^[20]

Notable people linked to the commune

Jean Sérafin, footballer
Aimé Molinié, senator

Notes

↑ At the beginning of the 21st century, the methods of identification have been modified by Law No. 2002-276 of 27 February 2002, the so-called "law of local democracy" and in particular Title V "census operations" allows, after a transitional period running from 2004 to 2008, the annual publication of the legal population of the different French administrative districts. For communes with a population greater than 10,000 inhabitants, a sample survey is conducted annually, the entire territory of these communes is taken into account at the end of the period of five years. The first "legal population" after 1999 under this new law came into force in 1 January 2009 and was based on the census of 2006.