France’s historic drought is stressing the country’s drinking-water system, forcing tens of thousands of people in some areas to rely on bottled water and tanker truck deliveries as dry conditions linger into autumn.
Drinking-water supplies were considered under strain for roughly 1 million people as of Sept. 23, according to France’s Ecological Transition Ministry. More than 83,000 people were affected by emergency measures, including about 47,000 receiving tanker-truck deliveries and roughly 33,000 supplied with bottled water, according to a ministry spokesperson.
Water shortages have affected communities across France, with some of the hardest hit in the Alps and southeast, as well as the south. Water use restrictions are in effect across almost all the country’s departments. No health effects have been reported and authorities have prioritized preventing disruptions at hospitals, medical clinics and care homes, according to the Ecological Transition Ministry.
Rainfall deficits started in March and deepened after an record hot summer, according to government forecaster Météo-France. Precipitation in September was 70% below the norm, with almost the entire country seeing once—in-a-decade levels of soil dryness, French forecasters said.
France’s drought has already rippled through the country’s energy system, forcing record curtailments of nuclear power as low river flows curbed reactor cooling, according to an analysis from BNEF. Depleted reservoirs and dry soils have reduced crop yields and threaten to prolong water stress into 2027, it added.
The drought extends across western Europe, with long-term rainfall deficits driving the Rhine to a record low in September, stranding vessels and driving up shipping costs along the vital waterway.
Rainfall chances are set to improve this week in France, especially along the Mediterranean coast, where thunderstorms are forecast to bring heavy downpours and cooler temperatures on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to Météo-France. Those rain chances are set to improve further later this autumn and early winter, according to long-term weather models and French forecasters.