Water Supply Crisis Looms as 88% of France Faces Drought Risk by 2025

A report indicates that 88% of France could face significant water supply tensions by 2025 without urgent changes.

Key Points

  • • 88% of France could face water supply tensions by 2025 without changes.
  • • The water crisis of summer 2022 could become the norm by 2050.
  • • 64% of France is still expected to face water tension by 2050, even with drastic measures.
  • • Ecosystems may suffer chronic stress due to unmet water needs.

A recent report from the Haut-Commissariat à la stratégie et au plan sounds the alarm on France's looming water supply challenges, predicting that 88% of the country could experience significant water supply tensions by 2025 due to climate change and inadequate management practices. This worrying forecast echoes the severe water crisis that gripped much of France during summer 2022, affecting over 86% of the territory.

Clément Beaune, the high commissioner, emphasized the urgent need for transformation in water management, indicating that without radical changes, the water scarcity seen in 2022 is likely to become a regular occurrence by 2050. "Even with drastic measures implemented, 64% of the country is still expected to face water tension by 2050," Beaune warned, highlighting that agriculture and industrial sectors will bear the brunt of potential restrictions on water usage.

The report, titled "L’eau : de graves tensions sur les écosystèmes et les usages à l’horizon 2050", indicates that climate change is already exacerbating heatwaves and extreme weather, which in turn, raises serious concerns about water availability across France. According to Hélène Arambourou, a co-author of the report, preserving water resources will require an unprecedented collective commitment to sustainable practices in all sectors, including agriculture and energy, which are major consumers of water.

By 2050, nearly 90% of France's watersheds could face adverse impacts unless significant conservation efforts are adopted. The report also cautions that ecosystems in regions like south-west and south-east France could suffer chronic stress due to unmet environmental water needs. The emphasis is clear: immediate action is necessary to safeguard France's freshwater resources for the future where drought conditions might become the norm. Failure to undertake these changes could result not only in ecological damage but also pose risks to the agricultural and industrial productivity crucial to the nation's economy.