Drought in France 2022: are you concerned? What are the forecasts for this summer?

DROUGHT. The groundwater level is falling and several departments are affected by drought and water restrictions. Discover the map of the areas concerned. Is this situation likely to persist?

[Mis à jour le 23 mai 2022 à 10h38] Rare rains, strong early heat… French soils are suffering from drought and this is likely to last despite the current rains. Several areas have already been placed on vigilance by the Ministry of Ecological Transition with concrete measures put in place to limit water consumption. The Ministry of Ecology warns that the situation is not likely to improve in the weeks and months to come, or even to get worse and other areas and other departments are likely to be impacted and to be placed on drought alert. He published a menu last week presenting the risks of drought in France for the coming months. Are you concerned?

Dry soil means bad harvests for worried farmers, especially wheat growers. Last week, the Ministry of Agriculture warned: “Winter crops, such as wheat or barley, which are now in the development phase, are beginning to experience situations that will affect yields. “. He also presides that the drought, the high temperatures and the lack of water will “have an impact on the production of cereals”. Expect to see the price of pasta and baguette increase. After the rise in the price of gasoline and the shortage of sunflower oil, will bread soon be missing from the shelves?

Which departments are on drought alert 2022? The list

Two new departments are affected by drought vigilance. As of May 23, 19 departments are therefore on alert and are affected by a prefectural decree limiting certain uses of water. 60 orders are in progress. Please note that only certain areas may be affected by these prefectural decrees and not all of them have the same scope. While some areas are on alert (i.e. level 1), others have been placed on alert (level 2), on heightened alert (level 3) or even in crisis (level 4).

• Aïn
• Alpes de Haute Provence
• Bouches du Rhone
• Charente
• Charente Maritime
• Two Sevres
• Drome
• Haute-Savoie
• Ille et Vilaine
• Indre
• Loire Atlantique
• Loiret
• Mayenne
• Morbihan
• Sarthe
• Tarn
• Vaucluse
• Vendee
• Vienna

Propluvia is the institute of the Ministry of Ecological Transition responsible for monitoring water levels and the internet platform that allows direct consultation of water restriction orders. The site includes a scalable map to view the areas affected by these prefectural decrees.

While 19 departments are currently subject to water restriction measures, a new drought is feared for this summer in France. The Ministry of Ecology has published a map on this subject, presenting the risks of drought in France for the coming months.

What are the different drought alert levels? What are the restrictions?

There are four main levels of drought vigilance and all of them result in the implementation of specific measures.

• Drought vigilance (level 1): informing and encouraging individuals and professionals to save water.
• Alert (level 2): ​​measures prohibiting the operation of valves, nautical activity, prohibition at certain times of watering gardens, green spaces, golf courses or washing one’s car. For farmers, reduction of levies for agricultural purposes below 50% (or ban up to 3 days a week).
• Enhanced alert (level 3): stronger limitation of withdrawals for watering gardens, green spaces, golf courses, car washing, etc., until certain withdrawals are prohibited. For farmers, reduction of levies for agricultural purposes greater than or equal to 50% (or ban greater than or equal to 3.5 days per week).
• Crisis (level 4): cessation of non-priority withdrawals, including withdrawals for agricultural purposes. Only withdrawals to ensure the exercise of priority uses are authorized. They concern sectors such as health, civil security, drinking water and sanitation.

What are the small gestures that can help limit dryness?

Individuals have a role to play in limiting drought, in particular through small everyday gestures summarized by the website of the Ministry of Ecological Transition:

• Avoid letting the water run
• Limit the watering of my garden,
• Install water-saving equipment,
• Take a shower instead of a bath
• Install a rainwater collector or containers under the gutter downspouts and in the garden to water it,
• Repair water leaks,
• Avoid running your washing machine or dishwasher half empty.