Ban on washing one’s car, watering the vegetable garden, filling the swimming pool… For several weeks now, many departments are at risk of drought, and the prefectures have listed on their website a list of measures to be taken to save water. The now almost commonplace consequences of this hot spell that plagued the earth.
This already known situation takes place this time much earlier in the season. A cocktail of high temperatures since April, a lack of rain in winter and the first heatwaves in June have thrown the country into the trap it usually faces in late August. Everything is early. The harvest started a month earlier, the rivers have already dried up, the springs have dried up, the vegetation has completely dried up, like at the end of summer. So many factors that called the firefighters to the field much earlier. The fire season, which usually starts in early July, started a few weeks ago, particularly with this huge fire that broke out in Gard on Thursday.
While the Tines Glacier in Savoie was forced to close much earlier than this week, all of nature bears witness to this alarming acceleration of the normal calendar. As if to remind us that the whole planet is involved in this global warming, beyond our borders, in Italy, a huge block of the Marmolada glacier has collapsed. A terrible warning shot that killed ten people.
In this context of severe drought, and before the country is hit by a heat wave again next week, the south of France has been hit hard. Between the lack of water and the mass arrivals of vacationers, the summer promises to be extremely difficult. The situation in Var is especially tense. “Lack of rain and alarming river levels prompt Vari Prefect to take measures to limit water use“, the prefecture shows. “An exceptional period awaits us. There was no rain in the winter, and the few thunderstorms that occurred in the spring did not allow for any improvements“, we explain in the services. Civil servants update the department’s map daily, bringing municipalities to different severity thresholds. While 94 of them are in high alert, two more are in crisis, the most alarming level, resulting in severe water restrictions. Less useful than a morning shower, the rain of bans falls on the two municipalities of Ribeau and Saint-Zaccharie. Parks and golf courses no longer need to be watered, swimming pools no longer need to be filled. No more cleaning vehicles, roads and terraces. Farmers also need to put the brakes on the tap.
Critical situation
All the data collected on a scientific level paint this border of the Mediterranean like a bubbling cauldron. On Twitter, where it relays the record temperatures of recent weeks, Météo-France Sud-Est distills information that hits the soul:With an average temperature of +5.6°C, the first half of 2022 is the hottest ever recorded at Mont Egual since measurements began in 1896.“. On its national website, the same weather service notes that this exceptional episode is part of an ongoing cycle. “In mainland France, the effects of climate change are mainly reflected in the increase in average temperature (…) since the mid-20s.e the number of hot days per century (maximum temperature above 25°C) is increasing. Heat waves have become more frequent and intense“, can we read there? For its part, the Bureau of Geological and Mining Surveys (BRGM), a benchmark public institution that analyzes the state of the subsoil, is sounding the alarm. The situation under our feet is critical. “Groundwater projections for this summer of 2022 are quite pessimistic, with a high or very high risk of drought over much of the area.“, he declares. Along with the Center-West, the Southeast is the most popular region.
In some cities, the water no longer flows. The small village of Varum Seilans is seeing the spring that feeds them dry up. Its 400 inhabitants are now supplied with water by a cistern. In the neighboring Alpes-Maritimes department, the same situation in Villars-sur-Var, a town of 760 people. “One of the springs of the mountain has dried up. We had to plug into another source and make sure it was potable. We distributed bottles of water for three days, and then everything was restored.“The employee of the municipality reports.
The rest of the country is not spared the drought. Loire-et-Cher, Creuse, Loire-Atlantique, departments that we do not associate with lack of water, are also concerned. In a part of their territory, local authorities introduce restrictions. Even Auvergne takes a hit. From 1eh June Boucher-Saint-Nicolas, a commune in Haute-Loire, also trucked in water for its 300 residents. “The source gives less and less for the first time. This is bad because our city is touristic. We are on a great hiking trail, the GR70, and our population has doubled with the arrival of tourists.Mayor Josette Arno worries, who is also concerned about farmers’ livestock. A pumping solution was found in the waters of the nearby lake for 1300 cows of local farms.
In the middle of the holiday season, this drought is ruining tourist activity. Many forests are closed due to the danger of fire. So no hiking and sometimes no marine activities either. Rafting is not allowed in Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, where the gorges of the Du Verdon are dry. Due to safety reasons, swimming is also prohibited in some lakes where the water level has dropped a lot.
Source: Le Figaro
