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PROPERTY

Ban on swimming pool sales in south of France as drought intensifies

With large parts of France already under drought warnings, the environment minister has announced a ban on above-ground swimming pools in parts of the south.

Published: 5 May 2023 11:00 CEST
Ban on swimming pool sales in south of France as drought intensifies
Environment minister Christophe Bechu visits drought-hit areas of France. Photo by RAYMOND ROIG / AFP

Environment minister Christophe Béchu announced in a radio interview on Friday morning that he had requested the préfecture in the Pyrénées-Orientales to ban the sale of above-ground pools because of the drought situation in the area.

Much of southern France is in the grip of a drought, more severe than any other since 1959, according to regional préfet Rodrigue Furcy.

If people were allowed to purchase pools “they may be tempted to fill them even when it’s not allowed”, Bechu told the RTL broadcaster.

“On the basis of what’s happening with nature, and the situation that we’re in, people are going to have to get used to the idea that global warming is happening right now,” Bechu said.

The above-ground pools are a popular choice in southern France as not only are they cheaper and easier to install than sunken pools, but most of them don’t require planning permission and – depending on their size – may not result in extra property taxes.

READ ALSO Everything you need to know about installing a swimming pool at your French property

The département of Pyrénées-Orientales, on the border with Spain, is already under drought restrictions which include a ban on car-washing and filling private swimming pools.

It is so far the worst-affected area of France, but many other départements have also been placed under drought restrictions or on a ‘warning’ level, as authorities eye the worryingly low water table.

MAP Which parts of France are under drought restrictions in spring 2023

Béchu also announced the publication “within the next few days” of new drought rules for all parts of France, which may include limits on water use for individuals.

The summer of 2022 saw drought conditions in large parts of France, while in some areas drinking water ran out altogether and authorities had to deliver bottled water to households. Low levels of rainfall over the winter mean that the water tables have not refilled to a sufficient level, meaning that drought could be even worse this summer.

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CLIMATE CRISIS

‘Extreme’ climate blamed for world’s worst wine harvest in 62 years

World wine production dropped 10 percent last year, the biggest fall in more than six decades, because of "extreme" climate changes, the body that monitors the trade said on Thursday.

Published: 26 April 2024 08:48 CEST
'Extreme' climate blamed for world's worst wine harvest in 62 years

“Extreme environmental conditions” including droughts, fires and other problems with climate were mostly to blame for the drastic fall, said the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) that covers nearly 50 wine producing countries.

Australia and Italy suffered the worst, with 26 and 23 percent drops. Spain lost more than a fifth of its production. Harvests in Chile and South Africa were down by more than 10 percent.

The OIV said the global grape harvest was the worst since 1961, and worse even than its early estimates in November.

In further bad news for winemakers, customers drank three per cent less wine in 2023, the French-based intergovernmental body said.

Director John Barker highlighted “drought, extreme heat and fires, as well as heavy rain causing flooding and fungal diseases across major northern and southern hemisphere wine producing regions.”

Although he said climate problems were not solely to blame for the drastic fall, “the most important challenge that the sector faces is climate change.

“We know that the grapevine, as a long-lived plant cultivated in often vulnerable areas, is strongly affected by climate change,” he added.

France bucked the falling harvest trend, with a four percent rise, making it by far the world’s biggest wine producer.

Wine consumption last year was however at its lowest level since 1996, confirming a fall-off over the last five years, according to the figures.

The trend is partly due to price rises caused by inflation and a sharp fall in wine drinking in China – down a quarter – due to its economic slowdown.

The Portuguese, French and Italians remain the world’s biggest wine drinkers per capita.

Barker said the underlying decrease in consumption is being “driven by demographic and lifestyle changes. But given the very complicated influences on global demand at the moment,” it is difficult to know whether the fall will continue.

“What is clear is that inflation is the dominant factor affecting demand in 2023,” he said.

Land given over to growing grapes to eat or for wine fell for the third consecutive year to 7.2 million hectares (17.7 million acres).

But India became one of the global top 10 grape producers for the first time with a three percent rise in the size of its vineyards.

France, however, has been pruning its vineyards back slightly, with its government paying winemakers to pull up vines or to distil their grapes.

The collapse of the Italian harvest to its lowest level since 1950 does not necessarily mean there will be a similar contraction there, said Barker.

Between floods and hailstones, and damp weather causing mildew in the centre and south of the country, the fall was “clearly linked to meteorological conditions”, he said.

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