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A N O P E R A T I O N O F N A T I O N W I D E I N T E R E S T
Restoring Mont St-Michel to its marine setting is part of a great ambition: to conduct an in-depth renovation of thelandscape that serves as a jewel-case to one of mankinds major shrines, and renew the path of discovery of the site, inthe spirit of the pilgrims crossing over.
Mont-Saint-Michel stands in a bay with breathtaking scenery and ecosystems. It is a spot of unmatched beauty thatfeatures twice in Unescos list of world heritage sites (1979). This outstanding dimension has earned it its internationalreputation. The feat of architecture and the exceptional harmony with the bay which its founders were looking for aretimeless qualities.
However, in the short term, Mont St-Michel is facing the threat of becoming irremediably landlocked. Around the rock,silting has worsened over the centuries and with successive human interventions polderization, the building of thecauseway, and the dam fitted with floating sluice-gates Colonisation by plant life continues. The natural sands arespoilt by the presence of a parking area.
Europe, the French State and the local and regional authorities have decided to join forces in recovering the spirit of theplace so that this treasure of all mankind should remain a sought-after monument for generations to come.
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THE SPIRIT OF MONT ST-MICHEL BREATHES OVER THE BAY
A SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OPERATION
Since 1995, when the French State and the Syndicat
Mixte Baie du Mont-Saint-Michel became involved, and
subsequently the launch of the initial works in 2005,
restoring the Mont to its marine setting has turned out
to be one of Europes most original and remarkable site
restoration operations. The European Union, which is
contributing funding, has highlighted its dimension asa genuine sustainable development project to serve the
area.
The main idea is to restore a marine setting to Mont St-
Michel with tidal water all around on a regular basis, by
using the combined power of the water from the incoming tide and from the River Couesnon. Reclaiming the sands in this
way also means doing away with the 15 hectares of car and coach parks, as well as the causeway linking the rocky island
to the mainland, as they have blocked the tidal currents for over 130 years.
The idea is also to have a completely new approach to the monument for the 3 million sightseers who come to see it, and
often faithfully come again. From the mainland up to the Mont, a new approach road is to be constructed: you arrive at
a parking area with reception and information services, 2.5 km (1.5 mi) from the Mont, and take the footpaths or publictransport shuttle. You will then be able to taste the old spirit of crossing over to Mont St-Michel, taking the time needed to
take in the bay scenery, stopping off at the dam then the pedestrian footbridge offering an unbroken view of Tombelaine
rock, Mont St-Michel and the bay.
These new conditions of access to the rock will play a crucial role in controlling the influx of tourists.
They will help to preserve, now and for future generations, the abbey approaches, a major cultural and spiritual destination,
and the natural landscape of the bay listed as a Unesco world heritage site.
CENTRAL TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN THE BAY AREA
The project is also central to schemes to boost the bay area economy for the benefit of the populations of both regions.Particular emphasis should be given to the action of Lower Normandy and Brittany Regions with the State and RFF to ensure
a rail link from Paris, and also from Cancale to Granville, with a new local public service, Ligne Baie (Bay Line) laid on each
summer. As a quality alternative to the car, it seeks gradually to coax the public to take a closer look at the bay by encouraging
short stays.
In addition to these concerted efforts, there are other coastal development schemes to take the project further (Operation
Grand Site and then the programme for Integrated management of the coastal areas within the bay), and also productions
responding to visitors expectations in terms of cultural enrichment (Scriptorial at Avranches, celebration of the 13 th centenary
of Mont St-Michel). All these initiatives help to renew the image of the bay and to give wider dissemination to the economic
benefits of Mont St-Michel, a flagship of the local economy.
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A JOB HALF COMPLETED
Restoring Mont St-Michel to its marine setting, an initiative of the
French State and the Syndicat Mixte Baie du Mont-Saint-Michel,
is now in its operational phase, halfway from full completion.
A number of landmark stages are due to be reached:
2009 >The building of the dam across the Couesnon,officially launched by the Prime Minister in June 2006, reaches
completion. This construction, the cornerstone of the water
management aspect of the project, began its task of desiltingthe Mont approaches in May 2009. The public service delegation
for visitor parking and transport was also awarded in the autumn
of 2009.
2010 >This year will mark the start of the reception facilities (landscaped parking area, reception and services buildings) andaccess to Mont St-Michel (pedestrian bridge and causeway) providing a totally new approach to the rock.
A start will also be made to modifications both upstream and downstream of the dam, which are to restore the Couesnons
hydraulic capacity to shift the silt out far beyond the Mont.
2012 >The new parking area on the mainland and the public transport shuttles will be commissioned to carry visitors tothe Mont.
A final stage is to be reached in 2014 with completion of the pedestrian bridge and, still more symbolically in 2015, with thedestruction of the causeway after over a century.
The works contributing to restore Mont St-Michel to a marine setting will by then have been fully completed, but it will be a
few more years before a broad area of sands opens up around the rock and for the Mont to recover its marine setting in all
its fullness.Mont St-Michel will remain open to visitors during the works
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magence3D/MGDesign
Commissioning of the pedestrian bridge
Commissioning on the east arm
Up- and downstream of the dam across the Couesnon
Commissioning of the parking area
Commissioning of the shuttles
WORKSTARTS
TIMELINE FOR THE WORKS
THE DAM ACROSS THE COUESNON
WATER MANAGEMENT WORKS
PARKING AREA
SHUTTLES
THE NEW ACCESS TO THE MONT
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BRINGING THE TIDES BACK TO THE MONT
The silt deposited by the sea on each tide as a short-term threat to Mont St-Michel. This natural phenomenon,
orsened by human interventions, ould eventually have made the Mont a part of the mainland. This is hy the
State and local and regional authorities joined forces in order to bring the tides back to the Mont and restore the
abbey as a great heritage shrine.
The operation to restore the sands will free the Mont from the build-up of silt and the grip of the salt meadows. Through
the combined forces of the sea and the Couesnon, the sediment will be flushed out to sea away from the vicinity of the
Mont, which will stay clear of the salt marshes for a long time to come.
Once the new dam is commissioned, the demolition of the current parking areas and the causeway, which are an obstacle
to the free circulation of sea currents, almost 15 hectares (36 acres) of sands will be restored to nature. Mont St-Michels
environment will completely recover its marine dimension.
The River Couesnon will have the task of shifting the silt that has built
up between the mainland and the rock. Tide after tide, the new dam
will generate progressive releases of water, restricted to the Mont ap-
proaches; Regaining its hydraulic power, the river will be strong enough
to lower the level of the sands, push back the salt marshes and maintainthe marine setting for a long time to come around the Mont and the
ramparts. The intermittent presence of the sea will once more make
the sands and channels an ever-changing sight depending on the tide
and light.
A Panel for hydrosedimentary monitoring, made up of independent international experts,has been advising the Syndicat Mixte Baie du Mont-Saint-Michel since July 2007.
Its task is to monitor the hydraulic and sedimentary evolution of controlled flushing
operations over time, analyze the results obtained and if necessary suggest further measures.
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T
homasJouanneau
by 2025Today
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BACK TO THE SPIRIT OF THE CROSSING
As a masterpiece of the human heritage, Mont St-Michel is today the most popular tourist venue outside of Paris.
Each year, three million visitors come from the orld over to admire it.
Hoever, the reception facilities are no longer in line ith the prestige of the place or ith public expectations.
The project ill enhance the crossing from the mainland to Mont St-Michel, ith a completely ne path to dis-
cover the Mont linking together the different types of scenery you pass through. The ne approach offered to
the public ill be orthy of this major orld heritage site and its symbolic representation.
THE RECEPTION wORKS ON THE MAINLAND: A TRANSITION BEFORE THE CROSSING
On parking their vehicles in the parking area on the mainland 2.5 km (1.5 mi) from the Mont, visitors will find services nearbyand will then access the Mont either on foot or in the transport shuttle. There will be parking for 4,200 cars and coaches.
Standing back away from the Mont, the car park will fade into the background for the benefit of the site.
THE PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE: A JETTY OUT TO THE MONT
Visitors will set out on a causeway offset to the east. This will turn into a
pedestrian bridge over the final 750 metres, bending off westwards and
stopping 120 metres short of the ramparts. Walkers will find themselves in
a safe, peaceful atmosphere on a footpath protected from the lane taken by
the shuttles and the traffic from the odd authorized vehicle.
THE FINAL STAGE: A SUBMERSIBLE FORD
A slipway gently sloping down will take visitors from the pedestrian bridge onto an earth platform surmounted by a submersible
ford. This will take them across the final 120 metres from the pedestrian bridge to the Porte de lAvance (the main entrance
to the Mont). Very occasionally, the ford will come under water on very big spring tides, restoring its full marine dimension
to Mont St-Michel as an island surrounded by water, only accessible when the tide goes out.
Virtual fly past from Moidrey Cove again under water, the dam across the Couesnon, the pedestrian bridge and the Mont.The marine impression is clearly present for this average spring tide (coefficient 105/110).
La gestion de La frquentation touristique
Under the aegis of the Syndicat Mixte, an observatory of the number of visitors to Mont St-Michel was
set up starting in the spring of 2008 in partnership with the University of Western Brittany (Laboratoire
Gomer) in order to:
monitor changing numbers of visitors to the Mont; provide long-term help with management of tourist influxes to the site;
create a forecasting tool as a decision-making aid.
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Mont St-Michel
Dam
To
Pont
orson
ToAvranches
Parking area
Causeway
Pedestrian bridge
Earth platform and ford
Guiding and dividing dyke
Groynes
Groynes
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> Hydraulic works: M76.82- Dam: M34.60- Upstream hydraulics: M26.00- Downstream hydraulics: M16.22
> Reception works- Public spaces and buildings(excl. Public Service Delegation) : M8.34- Public Service Delegation(shuttles and parking area): M12.3
State and Syndicat Mixte
> Access works: M38.94- Pedestrian bridge: M36.14- Work on Historical Monuments: M2.80
> Owner expenses: M24.65
> Provisions: M15.25
Cost of the works: M176.3
Syndicat Mixte Baiedu Mont-Saint-Michel
2, rue du Prieur - BP 2950170 Ardevon
Operation superintendentMission Mont Saint-MichelDirection Dpartementaledes Territoires et de la Mer
de la Manche
Project owner
A JOINT OPERATIONRestoring Mont-Saint-Michel to a
marine setting represents 176.3
mi l l ion euros in d irect publ ic
investment.
3.80 million
Lower NormandyRegion
33.57 million
BrittanyRegion
14.75 million
Syndicat Mixte through its localauthority members:
63.92 million
EuropeFeder Fund
21.15million
tat
81.43million
Manchedepartment11.20 million
Ille-et-Vilainedepartment4.40 million
Internal financing: 6 million
Seine-Normandiewater board
Loire-Bretagnewater board
Schma global des amnagements
Hydraulic modificationsin the bay
Barrage / Dam
Ansede Moidrey
Overall diagram of the modifications
Amnagements hydrauliques lamont du barrageHydraulic modifications
Access works in the bay
OuVRAgES dACCuEIL
Reception works
AMNAgEMENTS HydRAuLIquESdANS LA BAIE
OuVRAgES dACCSdANS LA BAIE
Le gu / The ford
Curage du CouesnonDredging of the Couesnon
Remise en eaude lanse de Moidrey
Bringing the water backinto Moidrey Grove
NavettesShuttles
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ThomasJouanneau
BRL Ingnierie / Luc Weizmann Architect / SPRETEC / ANTEA
THE DAM ACROSS THE COUESNON
The cornerstone of the project, the new dam across the Couesnon will
gradually restore the River Couesnon to full power and enable the public
to enjoy a unique view of Mont St-Michel from the mainland. Each of
its components makes formal reference to the marine character of the
place, both in the outline of the details of the infrastructures and in
the organization of the spaces dedicated to receiving the public. Thus,
occupying a horizontal line and blending into the countryside, it suggests
the marine atmosphere of the bay. The play of sluice-gates opening
and closing, the changing water levels, change how we see the dam,
from full-length opaqueness to great transparency when the sluices are
completely open.
OVER THE wATER: LOOKING OUT OVER THE BAY AND THE MONT
The dam gives a good view over the water of the wider landscape of the Bay and Mont St-Michel itself.
The promenade-bridge over the dam was designed as somewhere to walk around
between the two banks of the Couesnon. Here ramblers and hikers wishing to walk
along the coastal path to discover the Archangels rock amid the sands can get a
marvellous view. For those wishing to stay a little longer and take in all the variety of
light effects and the natural atmospheres of Mont St-Michel Bay, there is a marine
balcony, a space laid out like an amphitheatre over the water, away from the noise
and bustle, where you are free to spend some time enjoying the vastness and beautyof the landscape.
On the east bank of the Couesnon, an esplanade open to visitors forms a passing place between the Caserne site and the
Mont access shuttles. Lastly, these different public spaces give a direct view of the movement of the dam sluices and the play
of water rushing through.
THE DAM AS wATER REGULATOR
Through the combined forces of the sea, the Couesnon and
the new dam, the silt will be flushed out to sea beyond Mont
St-Michel.
After commissioning the dam and gradual flushing operations,it will take several years, tide after tide, to clear the millions of
cubic metres of silt that have built up and slowly lower the level
of the sands. By the year 2025, the Couesnon will have carved
out a broad estuary straight back out into the English Channel. The intermittent presence of water on the bare sands will
make the scene look different depending on the light. Mont St-Michel will have regained its lost marine setting and will
stay that way for a long time to come.
This dams original feature is the way it operates, as the sluice-gates can work in both directions, when the water flows
downstream and when it flows upstream, depending on the tide and the rivers flow rate. Eight floodgates, each operated
by two hydraulic cylinders, rotate to fill the upstream section over the top on the incoming tide, and to drain it off via the
underside as it goes out, thereby amplifying the natural flow in the West arm and the East arm.
An independent international scientific committee has been set up to monitor the hydrosedimentary effects of these flushing
operations and verify the results obtained.
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THE wATER MANAGEMENT MODIFICATIONSToday, the bed of the Couesnon is no longer doing its job as a natural storage basin for tidal water, and this has reduced the
rivers flushing capability. The silting of the river bed and downstream from the dam is evidence of this loss of hydraulic power.
The river meanders only very little amid the silt and vegetation. The water management modifications will restore the rivers
strength to carry off the silt away from the Mont and maintain a natural environment of marine sands.
Once the river bed has been cleaned up, the Couesnon channel, in conjunction with the water reserve in Moidrey Cove, will
be able to store up to 1,500,000 cubic meters of water. This volume available for flushing will be collected from incoming
tidal waters and the rivers own natural flow.
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magence3D/MGDesign
UPSTREAM FROM THE DAM CLEANING OF 4.7 km OF THE COUESNON
Between the dam and Moidrey Cove, to get back to the
original bed level (+ 2m IGN 69*), the river will be cleaned
along the channelled section. Estimated volumes to be
dredged: 570,000 m3.
MOIDREY COVE BACK UNDER WATER
A former wetland meadow surrounded by the Couesnon for
a long time used as a site for mining tangue*, this reservoir of
extra water for the Couesnon will have a network of channels
along a length totalling around 11 km. An initial digging phase
was conducted in 2005 with the creation of pools intended for
parsley frogs, a protected amphibian species living in the cove.Estimated volumes to be removed: 700,000 m3.
* IGN 69: benchmark altimeter reading
** Tangue: silvery grey sediment formed from sand and fine shell particles.
industriaL reCYCLing of tHe tangue
The main areas currently being experimented for recycling the sediment removedfrom Moidrey Cove and the Couesnon are as farmland refill and calcareousenrichment of acid soils. In a return to ancestral practices, the addition of tanguewith its limestone content is an effective way of offsetting mineral depletion on
farmland in the polders, and it is also effective against a fungus that is a brassicaparasite in the Saint-Malo area.
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Imagence3D/MGDesign
BET Anta / BRL Ingnierie / Cabinet HYL landscape architectsand town planners(P. Hannetel / A. Yver / C. Laforge)
DOwNSTREAM FROM THE DAM
DEMOLITION OF THE OLD SEAFRONT
PARKING AREAS AND THE CAUSEWAY
The tangue*-covered section of the causeway will
be either recycled (to shore up the dykes to the
east) or flushed out (depending on the quality
of the tangue). The rocks protecting the causeway
can be reused.
DISMANTLING OF THE ROCK-FILLED
DYKES ON THE COUESNON (19TH C.)
Part of this rockfill will be reused for modifications
in the bay (guiding and diving dyke from the dam
up to the Mont, groynes to the east, eastern groyne
at the foot of the Mont)
TOP OF CHANNELS
The tangue removed immediately downstream of
the dam, around 200,000 m3, will as a priority be
flushed by the Couesnon out to sea into the bay.
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THE RECEPTION wORKS ON THE MAINLAND
As a stopping point from where the footpaths and
shuttles leave for Mont St-Michel, the parking area
is fully a part of the site visit. Blending unobtrusi-
vely into the surroundings, away from the Mont,
it is set in the scenery next to the polders and ex-
tending the wooded area at La Caserne. Vehicles
coming off the access road are concealed behind
dykes and plenty of planted vegetation.
VIEw OF MONT-SAINT-MICHEL
Upon arriving at the site, sightseers have a view
of the monument and can admire Mont St-Michel
and the bay: the Marais Blanc and the East path.
They are guided away from the cars towards the footpaths, along
which there are signboards to help understand the history of Mont St-
Michel and the bay. There is a choice of three walks: one, the East path,
is set on the edge of the polders, following on from the Marais Blanc;
another passes through the commercial sector of La Caserne, and
the third follows the Couesnon channel until you come to the dam.
In the area around the ooded section of La Caserne, the most
used spots are separated by clumps of shrubbery. A little further on,
in a grassland setting, following on from the nearby polders, there
are grassy lots intended for shorter periods of use (peak and near
peak periods).
The three buildings (reception, services, operation) housed in the
parking area offer local architectural forms (long, narrow buildings
with two-pitched roofs), combining old materials (granite walls) and
other more contemporary materials (glass partitions and timber sun-
screens).
Cabinet HYL, landscape architects and town planners(P. Hannetel / A. Yver / C. Laforge), Paris / Bruno Mader,architect / Design offce, SOGETI / COSIL, lighting.
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V
oliaTransport
Picturesnotcontractuallybinding
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oliaTransport-
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ndicatMixte
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THE CROSSING TO THE MONTVisitors from the mainland are invited to make their way to Mont St-Michel, the focal point of their gaze ever since they
entered the parking area. There is a choice of three paths with contrasting surroundings, with information along the way
on Mont St-Michel, the bay and their thousand-year history. They meet up alongside the dam, from where there is a good
view of Mont St-Michel gradually being restored to its marine setting. There are also several means of transport available
for crossing the sands, reaching the rock at the end of an approach that has been completely revamped.
ON FOOT, BY HORSE OR BYSHUTTLE VISITORS CAN CHOOSE.
The overall intention is to make access
available to the greatest number throughappropriate pricing, and with special
attention to mobility impaired users, while
respecting the site and the environment.
There are four ways of accessing Mont
St-Michel from the landscaped parking
area on the mainland*; visitors can walk
to the Mont, or go to the dam (c. 700 m.
away), where free shuttles are available.
These revers ible and clean (Euro V
standard) automobile shuttles, carrying 100
passengers, are specially designed for Mont St-Michel. There are departures
all year round from 8 am to 1am, at rates varying from 3 to 4 minutes waitin summer to a maximum quarter of an hour in deepest winter. The shuttles
drop visitors off some 350 metres short of the ramparts, where they get an
unbroken view of Mont St-Michel.
An original horse-drawn service in a maringote* is also available at the
shuttle departure point dear the dam (from 10am to 8pm or from 11am
to 5pm). As the emblematic animal of Lower Normandy, which is to stage
the World Equestrian Games in 2014, the horse will remain a clean and fun
solution.
For the mobility impaired, and people living or working on the Mont, there
will be reserved parking lots centrally placed in the parking area, with a free
20-seater minibus service to the foot of the ramparts 7/24 all year round.
A fourth possibility is available to visitors coming from Pontorson railway
station. Whether arriving by train or parking at the nearby 250 capacity car
park, they will have a bus service timed for train connections; the single fare
is 2 per person.
*The maringote is the old name for the light horse-drawn carts that took pilgrims and visitors to the bay.
6.50 return / person under 14s 3.25, one free ride for under 14s.
mainland parking area: 4,200 places, including 200 reserved for (motor) cycles,8.50 / car, 55 / private coach, 12.50 / camping-car,
3.50 / motor-cycle,34 one-year subscription, cycles no charge.
V
oliaTransport
The Syndicat Mixte delegates all reception service
(parking area, services and shuttles) to Veolia transport.
Total budget: 36 million euros towards which
the Syndicat Mixte and the State contributeM12.30, through an equipment grant with
possible yearly rates compensations.
duration: 3 years of construction and 10 years
of operation. Commissioning: 2012
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THE MONT ST-MICHEL ACCESS wORKSBetween Mont St-Michel and the mainland, it is all going to change. The causeway that has been blocking the water flow
since 1879 is to go. It will be demolished at the end of operations, a symbolic gesture that will mark the completion of
reclamation of the site.
A fine-looking pedestrian bridge will straddle the reclaimed marine spaces, coming to rest on the future Mont St-Michel
earth platform. The new access route from the mainland restores the full meaning of the bay crossing, opening up a fresh
view of the bay, Tombelaine and the Mont. Visitors are invited to go up to the rock in the safety and silence of a complete
experience regained.
A JETTY TO THE MONT
The access works to Mont St-Michel will be in sequence: first, the
new dyke to be set in the salt marshes, then the pedestrian bridge
crossing the East arm of the Couesnon and the marine sands, borne
by a whole succession of thin piers. From a distance, the pedestrian
bridge will seem to fade into the marine background, its thin deck
like a knife blade on the water. Pedestrians will walk on either side
of a central reservation in which the shuttles will move up and down
without disturbing them. The pedestrian areas will be have a timber
surface as found on jetties and other seaside structures.
CROSSING OVER TO THE MONT
The submersible ford takes you across the final 120 metres between
the pedestrian bridge and the entrance to Mont St-Michel. Its height
and design were defined in order to set off the ramparts and create
insularity during the very large spring tides. Up to tidal coefficient 95,
you will enter the Mont as now through the main Porte de lAvance
entrance. Up to coefficient 103, access will be through a small side
gate.
And on a few days each year, the very biggest tides will cover the
ford, totally surrounding the ramparts. The symbolism of Mont St-
Michel, a rocky island topped by its abbey, will then be fully restored.
However even when submerged, the road will remain fordable by
emergency vehicles.
Dietmar Feichtinger Architect / BET Schlaich, Bergermann & Partner.
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Press contactClaire Montmont: Tel. 02 31 29 16 96
Mobile: 06 10 15 04 [email protected]
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P
atrickDo
ntot
An operation of nationwide interest backed by:
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