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CLIMATE CRISIS

Famous Canal du Midi stays closed amid water level fears in France

As drought forces the reopening of the Canal du Midi to be postponed, warnings over the low level of France’s water table have brought home the scale of the problems facing the country heading into summer.

Famous Canal du Midi stays closed amid water level fears in France
Boats berthed on the bottom of the Canal du Midi after water was drained for maintenance work in November, 2019. (Photo by ERIC CABANIS / AFP)

The Canal du Midi in south-west France remains closed three weeks later than scheduled after refilling operations following winter maintenance work were slowed down because of drought.

The 240 km canal – a Unesco World Heritage site and a major tourist attraction that was built in the 17th century – connects Toulouse to the Mediterranean. Along with the 193km Canal de Garonne, it forms the Canal des Deux Mers, joining the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. It was due to reopen fully to navigation in February, after parts had been drained for routine maintenance and restoration work over winter.

Daily readings show the water level of the canal are 30 cm below normal levels, which means that it is too low to be safely navigable.

Voies navigables de France (VNF), which operates and maintains the canal, said in a statement that it had decided to postpone complete replenishment until mid-March, meaning it would remain closed to navigation for longer than originally anticipated, to ensure drinking water supplies for hundreds of thousands of people.

READ ALSO Storms, wildfires and drought: How much the climate crisis cost France in 2022

“The priority issue in this context of drought is to ensure the supply of drinking water for the populations,” VNF said last month.

“Voies navigables de France contributes to this by directing 50 percent of the water captured in the Black Mountains to supply the Cammazes reservoir to secure access to drinking water for the 220,000 inhabitants who depend on it. 

“VNF has also decided to postpone the complete replenishment of the Canal du Midi until March 15, 2023, in order to replenish the water reserves of the Lampy and Saint-Ferréol reservoirs as much as possible. This measure should lead to a saving of around 400,000m3 of water.”

READ ALSO MAP: Where in France is under water restrictions in spring 2023?

Water to supply the Canal du Midi comes mainly from the Aude, the Cesse and the Hérault rivers, but also from reservoirs at Lampy, Saint Ferréol and Ganguise. 

“The last few months have been particularly dry in the south-west basin and on the two dam-reservoirs managed by Voies navigables de France in the Black Mountains are at 55 percent compared to 85 percent at the same time in 2022,” VNF said.

The news about the absence of water to replenish one of south-west France’s most important waterways comes as the Bureau de recherches géologiques et minières (BRGM) warned that the water table across almost all of France was at a worryingly low level.

French local authorities are already putting in place water restrictions in order to try and avoid another punishing drought this summer, as the environment minister told the country “we should be alarmed” about the water situation.

READ ALSO France to impose water restrictions to avoid summer drought

And the scale of the problem was highlighted in a BRGM report published on Monday, March 13th, in which it said: “Groundwater levels remain below normal with 80 percent of levels moderately low to very low. The situation has deteriorated due to the lack of effective rainfall in February.”

Following a dry winter – no rain was recorded in France for 32 days – the BRGM described the situation as “degraded and unsatisfactory”. 

The remaining hope is for improved rainfall in March. “Recharge could resume in March in the areas that have been watered and the situation could then improve,” BRGM said. But it warned that insufficient rain would place further strain on low stocks.

READ ALSO ‘By a substantial margin’: How summer 2022 was Europe’s hottest on record

Much further into the year and the water table will stop being replenished as most of any rain that falls will be taken up by vegetation, experts have said.

However, even with significant rainfall, water levels in France may not return to normal levels. “The replenishment of stocks by spring remains difficult to envisage with the reactive aquifers showing very low levels.”

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PARIS 2024 OLYMPICS

How hot will it be in Paris during the Olympics?

A recent report has warned of the dangers of extreme heat for athletes - but what should spectators expect if they are in Paris for the Olympics or Paralympics?

How hot will it be in Paris during the Olympics?

The report labelled Rings of Fire – a collaboration between non-profit Climate Central, academics at Britain’s University of Portsmouth and 11 Olympians – warned that “intense heat at the Paris Olympics in July-August 2024 could lead to competitors collapsing and in worst case scenarios dying during the Games.”

Closer examination, however, reveals that the warning is based on previous heatwave scenarios in Paris, rather than any specific predictions for this summer.

Still, Paris can get pretty hot – so what should Olympics visitors expect this summer?

Seasonal norms

Held between July 26th and August 11th (Olympics) and August 28th and September 8th (Paralympics), there’s no doubt that the Games fall into the hottest part of the French summer.

Average temperatures in Paris for July and August are between 16C and 26C, falling slightly in September to 13C/22C. 

However, when the city is in the grip of a canicule (heatwave) temperatures can rise significantly – the highest temperature ever recorded in Paris was during a heatwave in July 2019 – it was 42.6C.

During a heatwave it’s not uncommon for temperatures to be in the high 30s and to sometimes hit 40C.

Heatwaves usually don’t last long – they are officially defined as days with hot temperatures which also see little fall in the temperature at night (the ‘tropical night’ effect) and it’s rare to have more than five consecutive days like this.

One extra thing to take into account is the ‘heat sink’ effect – the effect that makes cities hotter than the surrounding areas. This happens to an extent in all cities as the cumulative heat exuded from people, vehicles and machinery (especially air-conditioning units) raises the temperature.

It is especially pronounced in Paris, however, due to the geography which traps the heat and the fact that Paris is a city with very little green space – during a heatwave the city can be up to 10C hotter than the surrounding countryside.

Forecast for summer 2024 

The especially annoying thing about heatwaves is that weather forecasters can only predict them about a week in advance, so at present we have no way of knowing whether the weather will be normally warm or insanely hot during the Games period.

French weather forecaster Météo France has predicted hotter-than-average temperatures over the whole of the summer, but cannot predict individual weeks this far in advance.

So far the year has been unusually rainy with cooler than normal temperatures, although the sunshine has returned this week. 

So how should Games visitors prepare?

If you’re attending events within the city, be aware that not all the stands have shade so you should prepare for your event by using a high-factor sunscreen (factor 50 preferably) and take a hat that provides shade for your face and the back of your neck. Stay hydrated.

Loose-fitting, roomy clothing made from natural fibres (eg cotton or linen) will be the most comfortable.

Other than that – keep an eye on weather forecasts and warnings.

If a heatwave is predicted, weather warnings (ranging from yellow ‘be prepared’ to red ‘possible danger to life’) will be issued, along with advice on keeping yourself safe.

The city will also activate its heatwave plan if temperatures soar – this includes setting up brumisateurs (machines providing cooled water vapour) and showing a map of ‘cool rooms’ within the city. There are also provisions in place for elderly or ill people who are more vulnerable to high temperatures.

Even outside a heatwave period Paris has a network of drinking water fountains to enable you to stay hydrated.

Take the warnings seriously – every year people die due to heatwaves

READ ALSO The French government advice for staying cool in a heatwave

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