Letters: Are hire-boat companies killing trees along French canals?

To the Editor,

I was interested to read your recent article on the trees of the Canal du Midi.

I set off from Cornwall with my yacht in 2018 to tour the French canals and arrived at Sète in Spring 2019, from where I spent three months travelling to Bordeaux.

It was an incredible experience, much of the time shielded from the sun by the enormous mature plane trees.

We had read up on the canals before setting off from the UK, and the problem of the canker was highlighted in guide books.

 Apparently, it is a non-native fungal infection, thought to have entered France from the US in wooden ammunition boxes during World War Two.

Read more: Shade and chic: France’s history of planting trees in a row

The advice in all the guide books was very clear:

1. On no account tie up to trees when mooring. A rope pulled around a tree – or branch – can collect fungal spores. When the rope is attached to another tree several miles along the canal, the spores are transmitted, infecting that tree.

2. When mooring spikes are pulled out of the bank they must be sterilised with bleach to avoid passing on spores the next time they are used.

Along the Canal du Midi we encountered literally hundreds of hire-boats. No qualifications or previous experience is required, just a fairly substantial bank balance.

We often talked with the people on board, and were shocked by their lack of knowledge. 

Repeatedly we found them tied up to trees, and when we explained about the canker, they were surprised that the hire company had not mentioned it to them.

We were invariably told that they had received just half an hour of instruction on the boat (some as little as 15 minutes) and that included how to use the onboard wifi, the toilet, and the cooking facilities, as well as how to use the engine, and to navigate locks.

We passed along the Midi again in 2020, and the number of trees which had disappeared was plain to see.

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Long stretches that had been beautifully shaded a year earlier were now open to sweltering, direct sunlight, with the remains of huge bonfires along the banks. 

While new trees are being planted, we will not see them reach maturity, and it will only be our grandchildren's children who may see the return of the glory of the canal.

What I simply cannot understand is why hire companies do not include this essential advice on mooring in their basic training. 

After all, failing to do so is contributing to the spread of the canker which is destroying tens of thousands of the trees which make the Midi such an incredibly picturesque place, and it is upon this unique environment that their business is built.

John Holloway, Finistère

Editor’s note: We spoke to two hire-boats on this issue. Le Boat confirmed that during their pre-departure induction, customers are given information on best practices, such as avoiding tying boats to trees and sterilising mooring pins after each use, to help prevent the spread of this disease. It has also partnered with the navigation authority, VNF, to launch a fundraising initiative aimed at supporting the tree replanting programme.

Locaboat has also supported the replanting project and said it regularly organises joint communications to highlight the importance of the VNF's work and to raise awareness among its customers.

What is your experience of sailing on the Canal du Midi? Did you see boats moored to plane trees? Let us know at letters@connexionfrance.com