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WEATHER

Why are there so many ‘red’ pollen alerts this year in France?

By the end of May, 90 of France's 96 mainland départements had been placed on 'red' alert for elevated levels of pollen.

Published: 30 May 2023 11:24 CEST
Why are there so many 'red' pollen alerts this year in France?
A European dark bee collects pollen from a dandelion flower in France (Photo by IROZ GAIZKA / AFP)

Almost all – 90 out of 96 – of France’s mainland départements – have been placed on red alert for high pollen counts and risk of allergy symptoms, according to France’s National Aerobioligical Monitoring Network (Réseau national de surveillance aérobiologique, or RNSA).

The remaining départements, mostly located in France’s west, were Finistère, Morbihan, Ille-et-Vilaine, Mayenne, Orne and Sarthe, and they were placed on the ‘yellow’, or medium alert. 

The RNSA updated their note on Monday saying that all départements are expected to be affected by high pollen counts and elevated allergy risks this week.

“Grass pollens are gaining strength from the south to the north of the country”, RNSA wrote. 

This year, there were pollen alerts issued in the later months of winter, which is unusual for the season, and anecdotally, people across France have noticed more severe allergy symptoms than typically.

“Usually, it’s not as bad, but this year, I really feel that it’s different here. There’s a lot more pollen and I feel it in my itchy nose, my itchy throat,” one woman told TF1 channel on Monday.

Experts point to May weather as the culprit for high pollen counts this year. A representative from the RNSA told the TF1 channel that rain at the start of May “brought some respite to those who suffer from allergies by pressing the pollen into the ground, but now they have led to more grass growth”. With recent sunny weather, there has been more dispersion of grass pollen throughout the air, according to the organisation.

Other experts, like Samuel Monnier at the RNSA, explained to TF1 that climate change has impacted high pollen counts. Birch, a highly allergenic tree, has seen its pollen counts have jumped by 20 percent in the last 30 years.

“This is linked to climate change, and in particular to rising temperatures and CO2 concentrations, which are two key factors that increase the amount of pollen emitted by trees.

“It also leads to flowering earlier and pollen seasons being lengthened”, Monnier told TF1.

In urban areas, pollution can also worsen allergy symptoms, allergist Dr. Marie-Laure Megret-Gabeaud told TF1.

Experts recommend that those who suffer from allergies take simple steps, such as avoiding outdoor sports, rinsing and brushing hair often to remove pollen, and airing out the home prior to sunrise and after sunset.

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ENVIRONMENT

How likely are droughts and water restrictions in France in summer 2024?

Much of France has faced severe flooding this winter, but other areas already face water restrictions, and there's an extra variable in store global weather patterns play their part

Published: 12 April 2024 17:50 CEST
How likely are droughts and water restrictions in France in summer 2024?

France’s Bureau de Recherches Géologiques et Minières (BRGM) most recent report, in early March, revealed that the water table in France was ‘satisfactory over a large part of the country’, with levels above normal for the time of year in 46 percent of the country’s underground aquifers.

It warned at the time, however, that levels were low to very low in parts of Alsace, as well as in the Saône corridor and areas of Languedoc, from the south of the Massif Central to the coast, and the Roussillon area of southwest France.

March, too, was a wet month across the bulk of France – it was the fifth wettest since records began in 1958, according to national forecaster Météo-France.

Crucially however, most of the rain falling on the ground in France now will be gobbled up by vegetation, which means that very little water will make it through to aquifers. The groundwater recharge period, when underground water tables are refilled, is now over until late autumn 2024.

Basically, the water table is about as high as it’s going to get this summer.

Which brings us back to the weather.

Long-range forecasts are notoriously inaccurate but after a mild, wet winter, forecasters expect another dry, warm summer overall, following a cooler-than-normal and occasionally wet spring.

April, for example, is set to be marked by cool spells, though, for the April-May-June quarter as a whole, temperatures are expected to remain above seasonal averages. Forecasters warn that a higher-than-usual number of Spring storms could affect the south-east of the country.

Long-range models suggest, however, that June could be hot and dry, with consequences for agriculture – though groundwater levels should be high enough to cope comfortably.

Forecasting further into the summer is even less certain than normal because – over in the Pacific – El Nino is expected to be replaced by La Nina much faster than normal, making weather prediction difficult. 

The consensus is, however, that the cooling effect of La Nina will not be felt until much later in the year. That said, it will have a more immediate effect on weather activity in the North Atlantic. Forecasters are already predicting a record-breaking hurricane season – which will have an effect on French weather patterns.

Between May and July, forecast temperatures in France are likely to remain 1C to 2C above seasonal averages. Precipitation is expected to be fairly close to average, with a tendency for thunderstorms, especially in the south.

Forecast models predict a wet end to April, a fine and dry May, a hot and occasionally thundery June, and a warmer-than-normal July punctuated by thunderstorms – though some forecasts suggest more mixed weather in the north in the seventh month.

With water tables currently well recharged, the national water situation for the summer is, right now, giving experts little cause for concern. 

Thunderstorms are expected to provide occasional watering to limit surface drought, which is always possible even if water tables are well recharged. The summer of 2024 therefore looks set to be different from recent droughts. 

However, this is not to say water restrictions are not impossible, or even unlikely. In certain areas, notably the Aude and Pyrénées-Orientales, where rainfall has been well below average for years, the situation is already serious.

While the rest of the country saw high rainfall in March, these two départements were recording 50 percent less rain than normal.

These areas are already facing a range of water restrictions. To find out whether restrictions are in place where you live, consult the Vigieau website, which offers information on a national, regional and local level.

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