Despite a few nuances, since not all regions are affected in the same way and the situation, worse than in 2022 at the same period, is less worrying than in March, the table leaves little doubt about the forthcoming drought in France. This is what emerges from the Hydrological Anticipation and Monitoring Committee (Cash) which was held on Thursday 27 April in Paris. The opportunity to put a wide range of indicators into perspective: meteorology, river flow, state of groundwater and large reservoirs. For the first time, this session was open to the media, no doubt a sign that the government wishes to make public opinion aware of what awaits it this summer.
For the time being, Brittany and Aquitaine are doing quite well because it has rained in recent weeks. But on the map, three-quarters of France, as well as Martinique and Reunion, appear studded with sub-basins colored with an ominous red. All eyes are on the Mediterranean arc, particularly the Pyrénées-Orientales, which have not had a rainy day for over a year. The level in the groundwater is so low there that the Bureau of Geological and Mining Research (BRGM) mentions the risk of penetration of a salt wedge. In these conditions, for lack of fresh water in sufficient quantity, their content can become brackish, making it impossible to make the water drinkable.
A large part of the Pyrénées-Orientales could soon be classified as in crisis by the prefect. Three other departments are already partially affected by this type of decree, with the set of restrictions they entail: Bouches-du-Rhône, Var, but also Ain. To which are added, at the end of April, 27 departments in a situation of vigilance, 9 in a state of alert and 7 in a state of heightened alert, more than in 2022 on the same date.
The risk of “poorer quality” water
On average, the period of effective precipitation, which goes from September to March, before the vegetation develops by drawing on the resource, results this year in a precipitation deficit of 10%, against 20% in 2022, according to Météo. France. “We must not lower our guard, tell ourselves that it is less catastrophic than in 2022, warns Hervé Paul, mayor of Saint-Martin-du-Var (Alpes-Maritimes), on behalf of the local elected officials of the National Federation of licensing and governed communities. I who live in the Alpes-Maritimes, I remind you that when the volumes decrease, the pollutants, the sulphates concentrate. Not only do we have less water, but it becomes of poorer quality. »
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