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More Than 80 French Departments Enact Water-Use Limits
Rivers and groundwater levels have fallen across France, triggering restrictions in more than 80 departments that include agricultural uses. A hydrologist described the shift from February moisture peaks to near-record drought conditions by summer.
Jul 13, 4:00 AM·1m read1 source
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More than 80 French departments now operate under decrees that limit water use, including for agriculture, Le Monde reported. Rivers have been drying up and groundwater levels have dropped nationwide. A photograph taken July 9 at a branch of the Loire River in Loireauxence showed reduced flow.
The restrictions have spread as conditions deteriorated rapidly. Yves Tramblay, a hydrologist at the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development, stated that the current hydrological situation is exceptional and unprecedented. He noted that several regions reached maximum soil moisture in February after excessive rainfall, then approached the record-low drought levels of 1976 by the start of summer.
Tramblay said critical thresholds have been reached in many regions, resulting in very low river levels. The latest assessment from the Bureau de Recherches Géologiques et Minières showed stress in Limousin and the Northeast.
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