Update on French Drought Situation

The latest update on the drought situation in France is that there is talk that some Nuclear Reactors may have to shut down temporarily as there is just not enough water available in the rivers to pump through them to cool them down. So this may lead to electricity and power shortages. Lets hope this situation improves soon.

It is pretty drastic - too little rain in France and South East of England with France reporting the hottest Spring for 100 years. Meanwhile its apparently snowed in some Alpine ski resorts with Tignes having the heaviest snowfall since November with 0.8m falling on the 1st June !  Bizarre ! And here in Scotland we've had more rain than usual - as usual !

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Blue Flag Beaches in France

Here is a link to a list of the blue flag beaches in France. The blue flag is awarded based on :

• water quality,
• information displayed,
• cleanliness of the beach,
• toilet facilities etc
• in addition there must be some environmental education linked to the beach.

It does surprise me to see that some of my favourite beaches aren't listed. Also, some of the supposedly "great beaches for young children" aren't listed which is disappointing.

If you haven't decided which campsite to stay at yet the list of blue flagged beaches might help you. http://www.blueflag.org/Menu/Awarded+sites/2011/Northern+Hemisphere/France

What do you think about the beaches listed ? Have you found a beach which seemed really nice or one that wasn't so great ? We were slightly disappointed with the beaches at Trinite Sur Mer last year. I was a bit suspicious about the amount of green seaweed which had to be removed all the time in the early mornings - I wondered if this might be a sign of pollution and the water wasn't always all that clear. The only place that has so far tempted me in for a swim was the beach at the St Cast le Chatelet campsite on the north of the Brittany coast.

Another useful site that I have found to check water quality is http://baignades.sante.gouv.fr/editorial/en/accueil.html which allows you to search for water quality results at any of the beaches which have been tested. It's a slightly tricky site to use but its possible to get right down to some quite detailed information allowing you to check out the beaches before you book your holiday !

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