The Etang de Berre.
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PASCAL POCHARD-CASABIANCA
A parliamentary report proposes some twenty actions to save the Berre pond.
"Biological life has disappeared on half of the bottom of the pond" since 1966.
Among the proposals, the reopening of the Rove tunnel, collapsed since 1963.
Respect the European objective of “good water status” by 2027. It is with this objective that parliamentarians have submitted a report with some twenty actions to correct the “poor ecological status” of the Etang de Berre , in Bouches-du-Rhône, the largest lagoon in France.
"The probability" of passing this course "is more than uncertain", concedes the report of the parliamentary information mission on the rehabilitation of the Berre pond, presented this Wednesday to the National Assembly by its rapporteur, the deputy LREM of Bouches-du-Rhône Jean-Marc Zulesi.
But no question of using the possibility offered by the framework directive on water of October 23, 2000 to dispense with this deadline, insists the mission chaired by the deputies of Bouches-du-Rhône, Pierre Dharréville (PCF) and Eric Diard (LR): “The use of this exemption is not justified and the achievement of the objectives set for 2027 is essential”.
"Biological life has disappeared on half of the funds"
To improve the quality of the water in the Etang de Berre, about ten kilometers west of Marseille, the parliamentary mission recommends above all an additional reduction in the discharge of fresh water and silt from the Saint -Chamas, one of the 11 towns bordering this area of 15,500 hectares.
This morning, with @DiardEric and @pdharreville, I present the conclusions of my report on the rehabilitation of the Etang de Berre @AN_DevDur
✍️ 20 proposals to strengthen ecological governance & preserve biodiversity 🌿
👉 live https://t.co / gNSXxM5zBx
- Jean-Marc Zulesi (@jmzulesi) September 23, 2020
If historical pollution, of industrial and urban origin, "has now completely ceased", assures the report, the ecosystem of the lagoon has been especially disturbed since 1966 by the discharges from this plant which cause a "stratification" of the water. .
Consequence: salt water, heavier, plunges deep and "biological life has disappeared on half of the bottom of the pond".
True underwater meadows, the eelgrass, which extended over 6,000 hectares at the beginning of the 20th century, barely cover ten hectares today, victims as a bonus of various episodes of "malaïgue" ("bad water") , this meteorological phenomenon which combines high temperatures and absence of wind.
No closure of the Saint-Chamas plant
For years, the Saint-Chamas power station has evacuated 3.3 billion cubic meters of fresh water and 460,000 tonnes of silt per year.
But these discharges have already been severely limited, up to ceilings of 1.2 billion cubic meters and 60,000 tonnes per year.
The mission “recommends a new phase of reducing these releases, by plus or minus 50%”.
However, there is no question of closing the plant: this measure “does not seem opportune”, estimates the report, which proposes to update the study on the water diversion project from the plant, estimated at one billion euros in 2000.
Rove Canal
Another strong recommendation: the reopening of the Rove canal, dug in 1926 to connect the pond to the port of Marseille.
Since 1963 and the partial collapse of the Rove tunnel, this salt water supply has dried up, contributing to the imbalance of the pond.
Studies had evaluated this project at 31 million euros in 2016.
These measures would improve the ecological status of a lagoon only open to the Mediterranean through the Caronte channel.
In the Etang de Berre, a French lagoon with the longest renewal rate, the water remains on average 187 days, against 53 for example for the Etang de Thau (Hérault).
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