France's growing water crisis

The crisis has become almost permanent. Drought is hitting France hard and renewable water resources are shrinking. In Saint-Marcel-de-Careiret, in the southern Gard region, the comings and goings of the tankers that supply the small town with water illustrate the emergency.

To save an increasingly precious resource, the government has launched its "water plan": a roadmap accompanied by massive investments to achieve specific targets. For example, the plan calls for wastewater to be reused at a rate of 10 percent, compared with less than 1 percent today, and for urgent action to be taken to plug water leaks at the 170 most sensitive points in France. 

On the ground, action is gradually getting under way. Treated water from the Saint-Drézéry wastewater treatment plant in the southern Hérault department is used to water the hedges and willows nearby. Other applications, such as road cleaning, firefighting and watering vegetable crops, may soon follow. 

In the southern city of Montpellier, the water authority is using acoustic devices over the ageing network of drinking water pipes to track down leaks. Fixing leakages has already saved two million cubic metres of water, with a loss rate of 13 percent in the city, compared with the national average of 20 percent.

Agriculture accounts for 80 percent of water consumption in France in the summer. The sector will have to play a major role in the effort to use less water by changing its practices. Some crop varieties will have to be substituted with others that are more water-efficient. Yet these varieties must be chosen carefully. That's the challenge being tackled by the Institut national de la recherche agronomique (INRAE) Occitanie-Montpellier, where scientists are testing