Julie writes*
According to Jean-Francis Richeux, the president of the Saint-Malo Water Department, tap water shortages will become common in the near future in the city. Saint-Malo, in the west of France (Brittany), is a city of 45,000 residents known for its recurring floods and rainy weather.
However, for the last decade, the city has been facing increasingly challenging weather. Droughts and heat waves have become part of the city’s summer for the last 5 years. In 2022, the hottest temperature has been recorded for the city with 41 degrees the 18th of July. The pressure on drinking water resources is now not only a summer threat. Indeed, because of a rainfall deficit in the region (20% in 2022), drought risks are also becoming an issue during the fall: for instance, in 2022, the risk of drinking water shortages was estimated at 50%.
Moreover, even if rainfall returns to its normal rate, not much will penetrate the ground as it is mostly made of granite. Therefore, the region also faces a lack of groundwater, and, with this increasing rainfall deficit, Saint-Malo relies on other cities to provide water but this comes with a cost that is partially reflected in consumer’s water bills. Since 2020, the cost of drinking water distributed by the “Malouine Water Authority” (RME) increased by 6%.
Solutions have been implemented to reduce drinking water consumption. The focus of the last decade has been on preventing leakage through an intensive renewal of the pipe network. For instance, the RME is renewing 6km of pipes from October 2023 to May 2024. This focus on reducing leakage has been successful as the rate has decreased from 12% in 2021 to 8% in 2022, compared to a national average of 20%.
However, those solutions will not be enough to prevent Saint-Malo from drinking water shortages. The city, as well as the government, calls for sobriety in drinking water consumption. This sobriety, at first sight, seems difficult to reach as tourism often led to an increase in water consumption in the past years. To address this issue, the RME made the first few cube meters of drinking water not free so as not to encourage non-sustainable tourism. Nonetheless, the water authority implemented progressive tariff ranges to support small households.
Bottom Line: Saint-Malo will face drinking water shortages in the coming years due to a combination of factors: an absence of groundwater, a rainfall deficit, and increasing droughts and heatwaves.
* Please help my Water Scarcity students by commenting on unclear analysis, alternative perspectives, better data sources, or maybe just saying something nice 🙂
Julie:
I look at the map of France and find Saint-Malo sitting on one of the largest bodies of water globally, the Atlantic Ocean. Have not been there to see it for myself as much of my working in Europe was confined to Germany with forays into the west and east of Germany.
Sitting on a rock certainly makes it difficult to have sufficient ground water. The weather would play havoc for fresh water needs in Saint Malo. What comes to mind is an alternative source for water. A bit of personal history.
In 1970, I was on assigned duty in Guantánamo, Cuba with 2nd Bn 8th Marines. This was well before it being used to house prisoners. For water, the base had a desalination plant. I read the stories of it being tainted. However, I can assure you, we were bathing in it, over-utilizing it, and drinking it. Enough on the history lesson.
Has the city or the country of France given consideration to building a desalination plant? The plant in Cuba was producing an ~2 million gallons daily. It does not have to be 100% support to the city of Saint Malo. It could just relieve some of the demand for other sources of water.
Another observation taken from where I live in Maricopa, AZ. There is an extensive use of gray water for external uses such as watering. Not a big fan of it; but, it does give relief to the use of ground water.
Hope this helps, good luck.
Bill
Thank you for your comment and sharing your experience.
I looked at desalination plants in Saint-Malo but for now, it is just a project that local water authorities have to address the issue of water becoming scarce.
Two other solutions are also discussed to increase water supplies: sewage treatment or pumping the river La Rance further in the watershed.
However, none of the solutions mentioned have already been improved.