Aston, Ariège

Aston
View of the Étang de Larnoum one of many Étangs in the commune
Aston
Location within Midi-Pyrénées region  Aston
Coordinates: 42°46′32″N 1°40′27″E / 42.7756°N 1.6742°ECoordinates: 42°46′32″N 1°40′27″E / 42.7756°N 1.6742°E
Country	France
Region	Languedoc-Roussillon-Midi-Pyrénées
Department	Ariège
Arrondissement	Foix
Canton	Cabannes
Intercommunality	Vallées d'Ax
Government
• Mayor (2008–2020)	Jean Lassalle
Area^1	153.8 km^2 (59.4 sq mi)
Population (2010)^2	218
• Density	1.4/km^2 (3.7/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	09024 / 09310
Elevation	554–2,912 m (1,818–9,554 ft) (avg. 560 m or 1,840 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.

Aston 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 Astonnais or Astonnaises.^[1]

Geography

Aston is located some 90 km west of Perpignan and 30 km south of Foix. It is located high in the Pyrenees with its southern border the border between France and Andorra. Access to the commune is solely by a local road from Les Cabannes in the north to the village which lies at the northern tip of the commune. The D522 road from Les Cabannes passes down the eastern border of the commune in a tortuous route which terminates at the Angaka ski resort just east of the commune. Except for a very small area around the village the commune is extremely rugged and heavily forested.^[2]

The Aston river rises in the south of the commune and flows north, passing through the village, to join the Ariège at Les Cabannes, gathering a very large number of tributaries from all corners of the commune.^[2]

Neighbouring communes and villages^[3]

Administration

List of Successive Mayors^[4]

From	To	Name	Party	Position
2001	2020	Jean Lasalle

(Not all data is known)

Demography

In 2010 the commune had 218 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 towns that have a sample survey every year.^{[Note 1]}

Population Change (See database)

1793	1800	1806	1821	1831	1836	1841	1846	1851
-	266	471	466	529	569	570	586	604

1856	1861	1866	1872	1876	1881	1886	1891	1896
510	503	517	502	464	422	414	371	373

1901	1906	1911	1921	1926	1931	1936	1946	1954
334	315	296	246	211	198	181	318	229

1962	1968	1975	1982	1990	1999	2006	2010	-
215	201	180	321	231	241	237	218	-

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

Economy

The commune has two dams for the generation of Hydroelectricity: the Laparan and the Riète. They are operated by Électricité de France.

The Étang de Larnoum in autumn

Sites and monuments

• The Étang de Larnoum

See also

• Communes of the Ariège department

External links

• Aston on Google Maps
• Aston on Géoportail, National Geographic Institute (IGN) website (French)
• Aston on the 1750 Cassini Map
• Aston on the INSEE website (French)
• INSEE (French)

Notes and references

Notes

1. 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 on 1 January 2009 and was based on the census of 2006.

References

1. Inhabitants of Ariège (French)
2. Google Maps
3. Géoportail, IGN (French)
4. List of Mayors of France (French)