Wash your car, fill your swimming pool or water your garden.
Trivial gestures which, in this unprecedented drought, can cost the French dearly.
To ensure that everyone respects the restrictions, the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB) carries out daily checks, even in the private garden.
Since the generalization of the drought throughout the territory, the number of operations has exploded: at the end of May, the environmental police listed around 500 checks carried out since the beginning of the year.
At the end of July, it had 2,000. A week later, 4,000. "
It's a considerable increase, but proportionate to the situation
", explains Loïc Obled, deputy director general "
Police, knowledge, expertise
" at the OFB.
Patrols and reports
In concrete terms, these operations are carried out by the various departmental teams who ensure compliance with prefectural orders.
These funds differ from one department to another, depending on the issues and specificities of the territory.
In this period of crisis, around forty additional agents can be mobilized throughout the territory to strengthen the teams.
Their role: to patrol and intervene in the event of inappropriate behavior.
"
They can also respond to a report on an identified area,
" says Loïc Obled.
This is the case when information comes back, from the town halls or even the local residents
”.
Reports that allow them to intervene directly in private homes, in their garden for example, when inappropriate water consumption has been reported to them.
These operations do not systematically result in a sanction, quite the contrary.
“
About 8 to 9 people out of 10 comply with the prohibitions provided for by prefectural decrees,
underlines Loïc Obled.
And, when this is not the case, the objective is really to teach, to explain why washing your car is not a good idea at the moment
”.
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A still difficult pedagogy, according to the OFB, which explains that in the eyes of users water remains a particular good.
"
Everyone believes that their personal use takes priority over that of others... Our objective is therefore to strike a balance between this consumption and the preservation of this resource
", continues Loïc Obled.
The most refractory, about a tenth, fall under the authority of the prosecutor's office, which defines any sanctions, from a reminder of the law to the payment of a fine.
The latter can range from 1,500 euros for a first offense to 3,000 euros in the event of a repeat offense.
Companies, they risk up to 7000 euros.
From explanation to sanctions
Explanation and discussion are all the more important as some departments remain unaccustomed to the constraints linked to drought.
"
In Brittany or Rhône-Alpes, the inhabitants have undergone a lot of checks because their lifestyles are much less adapted to these intense droughts
", observes the specialist.
Read alsoHave you reduced your water consumption due to the drought?
The wave of controls underway for ten days is far from over and should continue throughout the drought period.
“
These first operations made it possible to raise awareness and warn local residents of the importance of respecting restrictions.
Gradually, we are going to bet on the fact that everyone is now aware of these issues
”, explains the specialist before warning: “
From an explanation phase, we are going to move on to more sanctions
”.
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