With the Drought Action Plan that was officially implemented in 2004, each region
is to maintain updated information on the regional context (geographical features,
climatology, hydrological aspects, etc.), the actors involved in decision-making, the
areas sensitive to droughts, the different river discharge values that define critical
low-flow thresholds to support the characterization of four levels of alert, the mayor’s
role in the process, the past water abstraction restrictions and the methods of communication and public information, all this in collaboration with the SDAGE river
basin management plan. The objective is to improve the water resource monitoring
systems and the coherence of bans on water uses, as well as to enhance the coordination of actions at the catchment scale, especially between upstream and downstream
water users from different administrative units.
Since January 2012, a national observatory whose purpose is to study low flows
(Observatoire National Des Etiages, ONDE) has been implemented by the National
Agency for Water and Aquatic Environments
2 (ONEMA). This observatory has a dual
purpose: building a solid database of knowledge on summer low flows and developing
tools to manage drought crises. In France, the south and southwestern regions are
currently the most sensitive regions to droughts, while the north and northwestern
regions generally do not require long-lasting water bans. However, even in a catchment located in northwestern France, as is the case for the Vilaine catchment, although
it rarely suffers from severe droughts compared to what is observed in the southern
part of the country, it can happen that water managers have to face episodic problems
of imbalance between water availability and demand. This can create situations where
it becomes difficult to satisfy all uses and where tensions may occur.
6.2.3.2 National Plan to Cope with Climate Change
Within the recent national climate adaptation action plan driven by the Ministry for
the Environment (Plan national d’adaptation de la France aux effets du changement climatique 2011–2015), a set of actions regarding drought and water scarcity
is proposed. The following hierarchical priorities are considered regarding the types
of measures to be taken or planned:
• No-regret measures, which are beneficial even without climate change: in the
field of water, for instance, it includes the promotion of water saving;
• Reversible measures, which give leeway of action for adaptation: in the field of
water, measures such as the revision of levels of reference for flood prevention
or low-flow control;
• Long-term measures, such as the integration of climate change in the long-term
plans for drought adaptation;
• Measures that can be revised periodically as improved knowledge becomes
available.
2
A national public agency whose mission is to restore the healthy ecological status of water and
aquatic environments, within the goal set by the European Water Framework Directive.
116
I. La Jeunesse et al.
is to maintain updated information on the regional context (geographical features,
climatology, hydrological aspects, etc.), the actors involved in decision-making, the
areas sensitive to droughts, the different river discharge values that define critical
low-flow thresholds to support the characterization of four levels of alert, the mayor’s
role in the process, the past water abstraction restrictions and the methods of communication and public information, all this in collaboration with the SDAGE river
basin management plan. The objective is to improve the water resource monitoring
systems and the coherence of bans on water uses, as well as to enhance the coordination of actions at the catchment scale, especially between upstream and downstream
water users from different administrative units.
Since January 2012, a national observatory whose purpose is to study low flows
(Observatoire National Des Etiages, ONDE) has been implemented by the National
Agency for Water and Aquatic Environments
2 (ONEMA). This observatory has a dual
purpose: building a solid database of knowledge on summer low flows and developing
tools to manage drought crises. In France, the south and southwestern regions are
currently the most sensitive regions to droughts, while the north and northwestern
regions generally do not require long-lasting water bans. However, even in a catchment located in northwestern France, as is the case for the Vilaine catchment, although
it rarely suffers from severe droughts compared to what is observed in the southern
part of the country, it can happen that water managers have to face episodic problems
of imbalance between water availability and demand. This can create situations where
it becomes difficult to satisfy all uses and where tensions may occur.
6.2.3.2 National Plan to Cope with Climate Change
Within the recent national climate adaptation action plan driven by the Ministry for
the Environment (Plan national d’adaptation de la France aux effets du changement climatique 2011–2015), a set of actions regarding drought and water scarcity
is proposed. The following hierarchical priorities are considered regarding the types
of measures to be taken or planned:
• No-regret measures, which are beneficial even without climate change: in the
field of water, for instance, it includes the promotion of water saving;
• Reversible measures, which give leeway of action for adaptation: in the field of
water, measures such as the revision of levels of reference for flood prevention
or low-flow control;
• Long-term measures, such as the integration of climate change in the long-term
plans for drought adaptation;
• Measures that can be revised periodically as improved knowledge becomes
available.
2
A national public agency whose mission is to restore the healthy ecological status of water and
aquatic environments, within the goal set by the European Water Framework Directive.
116
I. La Jeunesse et al.