Drought: impressive photos of dry French rivers


IN IMAGES, IN PICTURES – 93 departments in mainland France out of 96 are currently subject to water use restrictions to varying degrees.

The heat wave accentuated the historic drought that France is going through this summer, and caused the flow of rivers to drop, leading to the multiplication of water restriction measures.

The dry bed of the Doubs affected by drought, in Arcon, France, on August 8. DENIS BALIBOUSE / REUTERS
Fish rescue operation in the Siarne river affected by drought, in Saint-Fraigne (New Aquitaine) on August 10, 2022. YOHAN BONNET / AFP

Since Friday August 12, 93 departments in mainland France out of 96 have been subject to restrictions on the use of water to varying degrees.

The meager remains of the Verdon (Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur), August 11, 2022. Jan Woitas/dpa/Reuters
This photo taken on August 9, 2022 shows a partially dried up pond near Aire-sur-Adour (Landes), in southwestern France. GAIZKA IROZ / AFP

Among them” 3 are on alert, 16 on heightened alert and 74 in crisis (where even water withdrawals for agriculture are prohibited, NDRL)”, indicates the Ministry of Ecological Transition.

A dead fish in a dry pond at the Marais Breton in Villeneuve-en-Retz, August 8, 2022. STEPHANE MAHE / REUTERS
The Loire is, in places, completely dry. Jean-Michel Delage / Hans Lucas via Reuters Connect

In more than a hundred small towns in France, the pipes are empty and must be supplied with drinking water by tank trucks.

The dried up river “La Savoureuse” in Belfort (Bourgogne-Franche-Comté), August 12, 2022. SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP
A dead fish on the shore of a pond near Monfort en Chalosse (Landes), in southwestern France, on August 3, 2022. GAIZKA IROZ / AFP

In the medieval town of Pernes-Les-Fontaines in the Vaucluse, the basins that made it famous are now empty.

Read alsoDrought: “We never thought we would be affected like this”, the disarray of municipalities that lack water

In Europe, France is not the only one affected by the drying up of rivers. In the United Kingdom, for example, the source of the Thames has disappeared. In western Germany, the lack of water due to the summer heat peak makes the Rhine difficult to navigate.

A tugboat passes on the Rhine River near Oestrich Winkel in western Germany on August 12, 2022 as the water level fell below 40 cm, making the transport of ships more and more more difficult. YANN SCHREIBER / AFP

The prospect of a partial cessation of river traffic on this river, one of the busiest in the world, is a new headache for German industry.

SEE ALSO – Drought: the Loire so low that it is crossed on foot



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