France's groundwater level alarmingly low: Official report

By Nur Asena Erturk

ANKARA (AA) – France's groundwater level is alarmingly low, an official report revealed on Wednesday, as the country faces a "state of alert" over drought risk this summer.

It is mostly unsatisfying across the country with 68% of the groundwater levels below the monthly normal in April, the Bureau of Geological and Mining Research (BRGM) said in a statement.

While the rainfall compensated for the deficits in some regions in France, the situation did not improve so much in the rest of the country, the BRGM noted.

The groundwater levels will remain low until fall, the bureau said, explaining: "Periods of replenishment will be punctual and sparse, apart from exceptional precipitation events."

A map on BRGM's website shows that groundwater levels are particularly low in some eastern, southeastern, and central regions as of May 1.

France is in a "state of alert" over drought risk this summer, Ecological Transition Minister Christophe Bechu said on Feb. 22. He then met local authorities to discuss the situation.

He also said the groundwater has a two-month delay in terms of replenishment.

President Emmanuel Macron on March 30 announced a water conservation plan, with an allocation of €180 million ($196.3 million), to tackle the threat of drought as a warmer spring points towards a long summer.

Every region of France will adopt measures to better share water resources, and the plan will be implemented in every sector, including energy, tourism, industry, and agriculture, Macron added, warning of "grave distress situations next summer" in some towns.

France's weather authority Meteo France said on Feb. 22 that the country recorded a historically severe drought this winter, with no precipitation for 32 days since Jan. 21.

"This causes soil to dry up, which was already weakened by the drought in summer 2022," it said in a statement.