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France is facing an unusually early and severe drought, with authorities imposing a record number of water-use restrictions for this time of year, Ecological Transition Minister Monique Barbut said on Wednesday.
Speaking after a crisis meeting at the ministry, Barbut said the country was experiencing an exceptional drought nearly a month earlier than normal and warned that its intensity was particularly concerning.
She explained that the situation remained alarming despite spring rainfall being broadly within seasonal averages, attributing the worsening conditions to climate change and its impact on the water cycle.
“We are experiencing a drought situation that is exceptional in how early it is” — “almost a month earlier” than usual — and “in its intensity”, Barbut said.
“What makes the situation very worrying is that it is occurring despite spring rainfall having been broadly within the normal range,” she said.
“Climate change is causing a profound disruption to the water cycle”, she added.
According to the minister, rivers and streams are under increasing pressure, with water levels dropping sharply since June and about a quarter of the country’s smaller waterways having dried up.
She said the situation was unprecedented since France introduced its national monitoring system in 2012.
“This is a situation unprecedented since the introduction of the national monitoring system in 2012,” said Barbut.
France is currently experiencing its third heatwave in three months, with hot and dry conditions also fuelling widespread wildfires.
Scientists have repeatedly warned that human-driven climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events.
In eastern France, sections of the Doubs River have dried up completely, leaving exposed rocky riverbeds. Fabien Henriet, mayor of the village of Arçon, said such conditions previously occurred in August but were now arriving earlier, lasting longer and becoming more severe.
