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In heat wave orange vigilance and in the grip of a historic drought, the department is experiencing a high rate of leaks in its pipes. These “leaky networks” result in the waste of 5 million cubic meters per year in the metropolis of Perpignan.
The figure is staggering: in France, one in five liters of drinking water is lost in the pipes. And this is only an average: in 170 communities, more than half of the transported volume escapes from the distribution network. Among them, according to information from France Info not denied by the Ministry of Ecological Transition, 14 would be in the Pyrénées-Orientales, a department in the grip of a historic drought, subject to very severe restrictions on the use of water. and placed under orange vigilance for heat wave. In total, 74 towns and villages in this department appear on the national list of “black spots”.
Thus, in Fontpédrouse, only four liters out of ten reached the taps of the 246 subscribers in 2021, compared to nine out of ten, five years earlier. “Our network, 3 kilometers long, is 70 years old, says Chantal Calvet, there mayor. When you repair on one side, it leaks on the other: it farts everywhere.» Why not renew the pipes? “It’s a crazy job! she exclaims. These works cost sums ast