The tourist town of Colmar, which enjoys a "
four flowers
" label, announced on Friday August 5 that it had requested an exemption from the Haut-Rhin prefecture to be able to continue to water its flower beds, while the department is subject to new measures to restrict the use of water.
Colmar has "
invested heavily to ensure its reputation as a
'
City 4 Flowers
'
and
'
Fleur d'Or
'
and thus maintain its tourist appeal
", the city argues in a press release posted on its website.
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Its mayor, LR Éric Straumann, "
subscribes to the desire to preserve water resources, but would like certain particularities of the City of Colmar to be taken into account and compromises found
", continues the municipality.
On Wednesday, the prefect, Louis Laugier, announced in a press release that he had issued a decree imposing "
new measures for the temporary limitation of certain uses of water
", after those taken on July 12, the situation having meanwhile become "
critical in the Vosges valleys and in the south of the department
”.
Colmar is one of the municipalities concerned by these restrictions, according to the decree which, if it "
does not prohibit the watering of trees, shrubs and trees in pots
", prohibits on the other hand that "
lawns, green spaces and public flower beds
", notes the town hall, which has therefore stopped "
the watering of grassy areas and green spaces
".
But so that the "
investments in labor and plants
" made by the city "
are not a loss, and so as not to further weaken an economic sector already affected by the COVID crisis, (Éric Straumann) submitted a request for derogation to the Prefect in order to continue watering the flower beds and planters
, ”indicates the town hall.
Colmar has been rethinking “
its green spaces for several years to adapt to the effects of climate change and successive droughts
”, argues the city, anxious to find “a fair balance between vital needs and preservation of fauna and flora.
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France has been facing a historic drought for weeks.
Currently, "
more than a hundred municipalities
are deprived of drinking water
", said Friday the Minister of Ecological Transition Christophe Béchu.
