Trappist monks beat quarry owner in water battle
Belgium | For a decade the Trappist monks of Notre-Dame de Saint-Remy in Rochefort, southern Belgium, have been fighting with a quarry owner over the purity of the local spring water.
The monks have doggedly resisted a plan by Lhoist, an international company run by one of Belgium’s richest families, to deepen its lime quarry and redirect the Tridaine spring. This would have risked altering the unique taste of their famous beers.
Now, a court of appeal in Liège confirmed that while the quarry owner also owns the spring, it does not have the right to “remove or divert all or part of the water which supply the abbey”. This was reported on 14 May 2021.
Lhoist said it will study the ruling before deciding whether to make a final appeal.
Resorting to the legal system – not God’s judgement
The saga began a decade ago, when Lhoist announced its plan to deepen the quarry in Rochefort to extend its life until 2046. The operation would have involved pumping underground water from beneath the quarry. The monks opposed the plan as this would impact on the quality of the groundwater. They took their case to court and finally scored a victory.
Lhoist is the world’s largest lime, mineral and dolomite producer, with 100 subsidiaries in more than 25 countries and 6,400 employees, generating a turnover in excess of EUR 1 billion.
The renowned quality of the monks’ beer has earned the abbey a significant income. The NV Brasserie des Trappistes de Rochefort has an annual turnover of around EUR 14 million (USD 17 million), Belgian media say.
The website beerandbrewing.com estimates that the brewery’s capacity is around 34,000 barrels (40,000 hl) beer per year, but to prevent commercialism from destroying the balance of prayer, work, and rest, output is capped at 21,300 barrels (25,000 hl).
