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ENVIRONMENT

France bans heated terraces as part of climate change fight

The Environment Ministry estimated that outdoor heating was producing 500,000 tonnes of CO2 in France every year - the equivalent of the average emissions from 300,000 cars. Now, the government has banned it.

Outside heaters on terraces like this one are now banned in France.
Outside heaters on terraces like this one are now banned in France. (Photo by Thomas COEX / AFP)

It is now illegal for French cafes, bars, restaurants and other establishments to operate heated terraces. The ban, brought in on March 31st, is the result of various decrees put in place to fight climate change and reduce energy consumption. 

“The use of heating systems or other air-cooling technology that consumes energy in the public space and functions outside is banned,” reads the law. 

Some French cities, such as Lyon, already had bans in place. 

There are four exemptions to the rule: 

  • Closed tents at circuses and funfairs are permitted to use heating;
  • Mobile installations at cultural, sporting or temporary festive events can use heating – if they are covered/have protection from the rain;
  • Waiting areas in stations, ports and airports may still use outdoor heating; 
  • Bars, restaurants and cafés where the terrace area is covered and has sealed lateral faces, connected to the outer wall of the establishment with an airtight joint, can also use outdoor heaters (if local authorities do not object). 
  • Restaurants can still use outdoor heaters if they are located in an interior courtyard, rather than on street-facing terraces.
  • Those found breaking the rule can be given fines of up to €1,500 – an amount that can be surpassed in the case of repeat offences. 

The reasoning behind the new rule is that outdoor heaters are incredibly bad for the environment. It initially was recommended as a proposition of the Citizen’s Convention on Climate – an initiative whereby members of the public were asked to provide ideas for tackling climate change. 

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The French Environment Ministry estimated that the country’s outdoor heating produced 500,000 tonnes of CO2 annually – the equivalent to the average yearly emissions from 300,000 cars. 

While environmentalists welcome the measure – one they have been campaigning for for years – some business owners will be worried. 

Dominic Dettomme, the owner of the Jean Jaurès cafe in Paris’ 19th arrondissement told The Local previously that a ban on outdoor heating could cut his turnover by 30-40 percent. 

“I don’t think a few heating lamps in Paris pollute more than all the huge boats that cross international waters on a daily basis,” he said.

The impact of the heating ban on bars, restaurants and cafés will probably not be felt until the Autumn, when temperatures begin to drop again. 

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HEALTH

Perrier problems: What’s going on with French mineral water?

Perrier has halted production of 1-litre bottles of its famous carbonated water because of a contamination problem - the latest in a series of problems with some of France's most famous mineral water brands.

Perrier problems: What’s going on with French mineral water?

The French love bottled water. They spent an estimated €2.5 billion and drank an average of 145 bottles each of the stuff in 2023.

The country is both the world’s biggest exporter of bottled water and the home of its most famous brands from Volvic to Evian, Vittel to Perrier.

But all is far from well in the highly lucrative bottled water market.

In January, it was reported that a third of French mineral water brands received treatments which are banned for the supposedly ‘natural’ products and, in April, France’s health watchdog demanded a clampdown at Nestlé water sites after traces of “faecal” contamination were found.

Meanwhile drought conditions last year raised concerns about overproduction of bottled water in France, with companies exempted from water restrictions that everyone else faced.

Perrier problems

Now, it has emerged that Nestlé has halted production of one-litre bottles of Perrier water at its facility in Vergèze, in the Gard département in south-west France, according to Le Monde and Radio France.

After learning in April that one of the plant’s wells had been shut down following a ‘contamination episode’ after flooding caused by Storm Monica, the investigation has found that two more wells have recently undergone disinfection operations – which the Nestlé group said was a ‘regular maintenance operation’.

Following the April contamination warning, State authorities ordered the destruction of a batch of at least two million bottles of Perrier. The final number of destroyed bottles was around 2.9 million, according to Nestlé group’s own estimates.

Officials, including members of the Occitanie regional health authority, visited the Vergèze facility on May 30th to inspect the plant, boreholes and water quality monitoring laboratory. The findings of this inspection have not yet been made public.

But of seven wells used to produce Perrier brand fizzy mineral water, most are currently out of service, the investigation found – prompting production of the famous one-litre green bottles of Perrier water to be halted until at least the end of summer.

A préfectural decree means the company can draw water from two boreholes to produce a drink called Maison Perrier, which will not have ‘natural mineral water’ status.

Water conditions

The risk to water quality is not confined to the Vergèze operation. Safety concerns have been known by health authorities for years in the Vosges region where the Hépar, Contrex and Vittel brands are drawn, the investigation found, citing a confidential report in which officials expressed concern about the withdrawal of illicit treatments, which could “expose consumers to a health risk, as the treatments were put in place to compensate for a quality defect in the resource”.

In June 2023, in a letter sent to food safety watchdog the Agence nationale de sécurité sanitaire alimentaire nationale (Anses), the director of Occitanie’s regional health authority referred to “regular bacteriological contamination of raw water in at least five of the seven drilling”. 

In October of the same year, Anses alerted the government of an “insufficient level of confidence” to ensure “the health quality of finished products”.

Nestlé’s response

Nestlé said that it had initiated a plan to transform its factories, in agreement with authorities. “We have invested significantly, and will continue to do so, to protect this unique heritage and ensure its future,” the group told journalists from Le Monde and Radio France.

But unions are concerned about the future of the plant and its 1,000 employees and have triggered a clause in the Code du travail meaning they will be alerted of “facts likely to affect the economic situation of the company”, amid concerns authorities could order the shutdown of the plant for safety reasons.

So, is bottled water in France safe to drink?

There are two main types of bottled water in France – spring water and mineral water. 

Spring water is subject to the same safety regulations as tap water. But it cannot undergo disinfection treatment. Be aware, a single brand of spring water can in fact come from several sources located in different regions, and the composition can change bottle-by-bottle, depending on the origin.

Mineral waters are not subject to the same safety rules as tap water – in fact, some mineral waters would not be allowed in the public drinking water system because they would not meet strict criteria. For example, fluoride levels are limited at 1.5 mg/l for tap water; mineral waters, however, can contain up to 5 mg/l.

Like spring water, mineral water should not be subject to disinfection treatments.

But, on the whole, and despite recent concerns, bottled water in France is safe to drink.

And which one is the cheapest?

Tap water. According to consumer watchdog UFC-Que Choisir it costs €0.003 per litre, on average, or less than €2 per year for a consumption of 1.5 litres of tap water every day.

And it is subjected to all kinds of routine checks – 54 different parameters are monitored pretty much all the time.

6 things to know about tap water in France

If you’re not a fan of the taste, you could always run it through a water filter. It will be more expensive, but still cheaper than bottled water – and still subject to the same number of safety checks, plus it has been filtered.

It’s also better for the planet because tap water doesn’t involve plastic bottles – the city of Paris is currently running a campaign to encourage people to drink tap water in order to reduce waste in the form of plastic bottles. The city has hundreds of drinking water fountains and businesses that display the L’Eau de Paris’ label will refill your water bottle for free.

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