Paris wrestles with sewage in the Seine prior to the Olympics.
Will the Seine be clean enough to go swimming or not? This is a hot topic in Paris before the upcoming Olympic competitions. The city wants to allow swimming in the river, right in the heart of the city, as it will make for lovely pictures to be shared worldwide.
There's worry over whether the Seine will be safe for swimming though, due to its current polluted state. The authorities have pushed forward a €1 billion project to clean it up. With all the rain Paris has experienced this year, sewage has made its way into the Seine, adding to the pollution.
The French president, Emmanuel Macron, even announced that he'll dive into the river - not the most appetizing idea considering the state of the water. The city's mayor, Anne Hidalgo, wanted to dive into the Seine on June 23, with Paris' police chief, Laurent Nunez, and Marc Guillaume, prefect of the capital region. However, they might be postponing the event due to the increased media attention.
A Costly Cleanup
"We need better weather so that the water can regulate itself," commented Paris Deputy Mayor Pierre Rabadan. "We still have enough time to achieve the goal," he said, believing in their Olympic swimming plans. A total of €1.4 billion has been invested in sewage treatment plants and the sewage system in the Paris region. One of the crucial components of this project is a large retention basin called Austerlitz, worth €90 million. This basin can hold around 50,000 cubic meters of rainwater and sewage during heavy downpours, preventing sewage discharge into the Seine. The 'Bassin d'Austerlitz' is set to begin operation.
Although Mayor Guillaume mentioned a significant increase in various fish species in the Seine, a recent study by Surfrider suggests that the water quality is still a concern. According to them, only one out of 14 samples taken, both after heavy rain and on sunny days, had a satisfactory level of Seine water quality.
Olympic Swimmers Uneasy
Brazilian Olympic open water swimming champion Ana Marcela Cunha expressed her doubts, asking the organizers to come up with a 'Plan B' in case the competitions couldn't take place in the Seine due to poor water quality. "We're not trying to wipe out the Seine's history, but the swimmers' health should be the priority," she said.
Paris has begun testing the water daily since early June, with results to be released weekly. Hopefully, the city will also have better weather, as the Seine's current speed makes the sewage treatment plants less efficient. The lack of sunlight also threatens water quality, making it harder to eliminate intestinal bacteria.
In two years, a swimming pool at the Eiffel Tower is set to open. This has been a dream of the Parisians for a long time. Swimming in the Seine was banned in 1923. The promise to allow Parisians and swimmers to use the Seine again, 30 years ago, was made by Jacques Chirac. He said it would happen in 1993, but it never did. Now, there are plans to have 3 pools built, with one close to the Eiffel Tower.
A satirical social media campaign has emerged, called "I'm peeing in the Seine on June 23" (#jeippedanslaseinele23juin), criticizing the Olympic swimming pool plans. These plans cost over a billion euros, which some believe should be used elsewhere in the city.
The movie "Sous la Seine" (Under the Seine), a thriller where a shark is said to be menacing the river, is heavily advertised in the Paris Metro. This thriller, now streaming on Netflix, comes out before the Olympics, offering lots of blood and drama. "We did everything we could to make sure the movie would be out before the Olympics," director Xavier Gens mentioned.
