The situation is close to the beginning of December, but less good.
The state of groundwater in mainland France "remains generally satisfactory" thanks to the effective rains of November and December, "but deteriorates slightly" between December and January, the BRGM announced this Tuesday, which underlines the "very worrying" situation of the massif Corbières and the Roussillon plain, in the Pyrénées-Orientales.
💧 State of groundwater as of February 1, 2024
What to remember?
🔸 51% of levels are increasing (69% in October)
🔸 46% of levels are above monthly normals (56% last month)
🔸 Charging intensity is decreasing pic.twitter.com/xwE9iVsSfG
— BRGM (@BRGM_fr) February 13, 2024
As of February 1, 46% of the water tables are above seasonal norms and 15% at comparable levels, indicates the Bureau of Geological and Mining Research (BRGM), the public body responsible for their monitoring.
This situation is “more favorable” than in 2023 on the same date “where 60% of levels were below normal”.
“Only the aquifers of Languedoc, Roussillon and Corsica will maintain lower levels in January 2024 than in January 2023,” notes the BRGM in its bulletin.
Recharging that “slows down” on certain water tables
According to the BRGM, the “recharging of reactive aquifers is slowing down on many of them”.
“The significant recharge that occurred between the end of October and December had a notable effect on the water tables” which were for the most part very dry at the end of summer, recalls the organization in its monthly bulletin.
However, “in January, the intensity of groundwater recharge” decreased compared to December.
“The situation remains generally satisfactory but deteriorates slightly with 46% of levels above monthly normals,” notes the Bureau.
“Low to very low levels” are however noted on “the inertial layers of Sundgau”, in the south of Alsace, “and the Saône corridor” as well as “on those of the south-southeast and Corsica ".
In particular, “the levels remain very worrying on the limestone layers of the Corbières massif and the Roussillon plain”, in the Pyrénées-Orientales, warns the BRGM.
Also read “We have less water than in Marrakech”: in the Pyrénées-Orientales, we have been waiting for rain for two years
This warning comes after a year marked by a historic drought in Pyrénées-Orientales, a department with significant agricultural and tourist activity which has suffered numerous restrictions on water use.
On the Mediterranean rim and Corsica, “the cumulative rainfall in recent weeks has not stopped the downward trend,” notes the BRGM.
In these regions in January, “small flood peaks may have temporarily interrupted drainage, but they had little impact on monthly trends”.
As always, developments will depend on the level of rain before spring and the resumption of vegetation, which significantly reduces groundwater recharge.