39 French departments on drought water restrictions
A total of 39 departments in France are now on drought warning with water restrictions in place, of which five are on “high alert”.
The drought and water restrictions were confirmed across the departments yesterday (August 6).
Residents can check the level of water restrictions in your area by consulting the government’s Propluvia website, which features a colour-coded map detailing the specific alert levels for each district.
Alert levels, ascending in order of severity, range from grey, to yellow, to orange, to red.
Grey means that individuals in that area must try to save water.
Yellow means that farmers must reduce their water usage by 50%, or only use it on three days of the week; and watering large areas of grass such as gardens, parks, and golf ranges is not allowed during certain times. Activities using hosepipes, such as hand washing your car, are also not permitted.
Orange is the same as yellow, but with more restricted hours and less water allowed still.
Red means that water is only allowed to be used in authorised priority situations, including for reasons of health, civil order, or for drinking water and necessary hygiene.
The drought has been confirmed due to a lack of rainfall in recent months, and the hot temperatures of the continuing heat wave causing water to evaporate from the ground more quickly than usual.
The problem is particularly bad in the west of the country, with large swathes of the Vendée and Deux-Sèvres especially on red alert.
The drought confirmation comes as the heatwave of the past few weeks continues and peaks, although the hot temperatures are expected to come to an end across much of the country tonight (Tuesday August 7) as storms arrive.
The full list of departments on drought alert is:
Allier (03), Ardèche (07), Aveyron (12), Cantal (15), Charente (16), Charente-Maritime (17), Cher (18), Côtes-d’Or (21), Dordogne (24), Doubs (25), Drôme (26), Eure-et-Loir (28), Indre (36), Indre et Loire (37), Jura (39), Landes (40), Loir-et-Cher (41), Loire-Atlantique (44), Loiret (45), Lot (46), Lot-et-Garonne (47), Maine-et-Loire (49), Nord (59), Oise (60), Rhône (69), Haute-Saône (70), Saône et Loire (71), Sarthe (72), Savoie (73), Haute-Savoie (74), Deux-Sèvres (79), Tarn (81), Tarn-et-Garonne (82), Vendée (85), Vienne (86), Vosges (88), Territoire de Belfort (90), Yonne (89) and Essonne (91).
