Jean-Marc Peillex, the mayor of St Gervais, spoke out over the weekend about an up-coming Italian reality TV show, part of which is set to be filmed on Mont Blanc.
One of the tests to be included in the show is an ascent on Mont Blanc, with the first contestant reaching the top winning the grand prize.
Mr. Peillex spoke out on Monday and said that he wants to prohibit the filming from taking place and potentially prosecute those involved. He called for relevant departments to get involved and study the evidence.
Justifiably so, Mr Peillex and Chamonix's mayor, Eric Fournier, have spoken out a number of times in the last few years about people treating the Mont Blanc massif as a playground. With mountaineers calling on the rescue services without being in dire need and a number of other incidents which have called people's behavious in the mountains into question, you can perhaps see why they're keen not to promote Mont Blanc as a venue for a reality TV show.
Eric Fournier spoke out on the subject of the show too, but said it would be difficult to prosecute anyone "if the shots were made with a hand-held camera and not flyovers" [drone cameras].
