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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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ENVIRONMENT

Mystery sonic boom rattles French Mediterranean island of Corsica

An unidentified sonic boom heard on the French island of Corsica and in Italy may have been a meteorite, experts have said.

Mystery sonic boom rattles French Mediterranean island of Corsica

Media in Corsica reported that the event occurred at around 4.30pm on Thursday.

It was also felt on the Italian island of Elba. The town of Campo nell’Elba said on its Facebook page that a nearby tracking station had, “captured a seismic, acoustic event felt by everyone” at that time. 

Tuscany regional government president Eugenio Giani initially said it was an earthquake, then backtracked after Italy’s National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) ruled one out.

The Italian Air Force told Giani it had nothing to do with the sonic boom.

“The type of event which caused the tremor, felt by many as an earthquake over the entire coast of Tuscany and in some inland areas, is currently unconfirmed,” Giani wrote on social media.

The region’s Geophysics Institute and the University of Florence said in a joint statement that whatever caused the boom was travelling at 400 miles per second.

“A meteorite entering the atmosphere seems the most likely and in line with the data registered”.

The Corriere della Sera daily quoted an unnamed person from Italy’s civil protection agency saying, “the impact would have been registered by seismographs. The most likely hypothesis is still an aeroplane”.

It is not the first time mysterious sonic booms have been registered on Elba, the Corriere della Sera said. Similar events in 2012, 2016 and 2023 have yet to be explained, it said.

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