France : “Nouveau Poutès dam” : observation of the lenght of the reservoir

> Watch the ERN Video “Overflight of the Allier River upstream of the Poutès dam” 

Only since the second week of March it has been possible to turbine. Indeed, since the closing of the gates, the Allier had never exceeded the reserved flow (5m3/sec). According to EDF, the operating tests were positive.

On March 15, with a total flow of 15m3/sec, we were able to observe the creation of a reservoir over a few hundred meters. Further upstream, the Allier, deeper than in the ‘transparency’ mode of the dam over a few hundred meters, remained in its former minor bed with a good current favorable to migration.

On Thursday March 24th, this time with a total flow of the Allier of 10M3/sec, SOS Loire Vivante – ERN  flew over the site at high altitude with a drone to better observe the evolution of the bed and the water retention area. In addition, with the authorization of EDF, we flew at low altitude as close as possible to the dam and the water intake. The observations of March 15 were confirmed.

> Watch the ERN Video “Overflight of the Allier River upstream of the Poutès dam” 

France : Public policies to safeguard the Loire Salmon : a total incoherence !

France: PUBLIC POLICIES TO SAFEGUARD THE LOIRE SALMON: A TOTAL INCOHERENCE!

On the Allier, while EDF is completing work on the “new Poutès”, which will improve the situation of the salmon in the Allier, its own subsidiary, SHEMA, is building a hydroelectric power station that will perpetuate the negative impacts of the Vichy dam, which will reduce to nothing the efforts made upstream. Absurd and revolting!

>>read the complet Press release (in french only) edited by ERN-SOS Loire vivante and other NGO

 

This autumn, on the Poutès dam (river Allier)…

On September 29th, on the almost finished construction site of the new dam of Poutès (Allier),
the installed gates were lifted for the 1st time, just in time for the arrival of the salmons!

Ideal conditions for a free circulation of migratory fish and sediments…

The beginning of the hydroelectric production is planned for Spring 2022.

Read the press release (french)

2021 sept. /New gates have been installed and lifted on Poutes dam!  photo R. Epple ERN

>> More infos on “le Nouveau Poutès”

Loire salmon: The coup de grace in Vichy?

While considerable efforts have been made by the State, local authorities, associations and citizens to safeguard the species, the Prefect of the Allier has just authorized the construction of a hydroelectric power station on the Vichy dam, definitively condemning the possibilities of the re-conquest of the ALLIER by the salmon and directly threatening its survival.
This irresponsible and fatal project must be stopped.
A group of 10 national and local associations, including SOS Loire Vivante, has signed an appeal to the Prefect of the Allier. They are considering legal action, both national and European, to stop this deleterious project and replace it with an environmentally responsible solution.

> Read the press release of the associations (french only)
>> See the appeal (french only)

Report cover page

Hydropower in Europe : Transformation – not development (WWF Report)

European rivers are the most fragmented in the world, contributing to the rapid decline in freshwater biodiversity.
As a result, a drastic transformation of the hydropower sector is urgently needed to reduce its environmental
impact. This can be achieved through several steps: the first one is to stop building new hydropower plants which worsen the fragmentation of rivers and lead to the loss of precious habitats and species.

The second step is to lessen the environmental impact of existing plants through plant environmental refurbishment. From ecological flows to acquiring knowledge on fish migration patterns, hydropower plants can be adapted and managed in a more nature- sensitive manner, as illustrated by a case study on the Allier River in the Loire Valley, France.

The third step is the restoration of the rivers’ natural functions,
in particular continuity and habitats. The case study on the construction of a reproduction channel next to the Imatra hydropower plant in Finland, illustrates active restoration measures that should be taken to complement mitigation measures at the plant itself.

download the WWF Report :  https://www.wwf.eu/what_we_do/water/?uNewsID=2329866 

 

National Geographic highlights actions to promote ecological continuity of rivers

Are we finally going to reach a broad awareness of the urgency of restoring the ecological continuity of rivers? The Amber cartography has recently highlighted a staggering number of dams of all sizes that fragment Europe’s rivers (see our news of 05/01 :More than 1 Million). The quantity of small structures and thresholds is considerable. The large dams are no longer the only ones to be pointed at! By displaying the state of degradation of rivers in the eyes of all, this atlas is a very good tool for raising public awareness of the importance of restoring ecological continuity.
In 2020, some prestigious magazines have taken up the cause, such as Nature (2020/12/17) or, in France, the newspaper Le Monde (2020/12/16).  The National Geographic magazine also takes up these figures but points out the fact that in many parts of the world actions are underway to fight against this fragmentation of rivers.  Several examples of levelling or development of dams are cited, such as the Sélune in France. Several members of the Dam Removal Europe movement are interviewed

>> Read the National Geographic article of 2020/12/17

More than one million barriers fragment Europe’s rivers !

As part of the Amber project, a European atlas of dams and other obstacles was published this year. It took 4 years of census work, on 2700 km of rivers to complete this project, which is completed over time (see our news of last July 06). To date, the updated figure is staggering!  More than 1.2 million obstacles prevent the free running of our rivers and consequently their life …

A first study drawn from this database was published on 16/12/20 in the journal Nature (article to read here), signed by 20 researchers with Barbara Belletti, specialist in geomorphology at the CNRS and the University of Lyon, as main author.

 >> Discover the Atlas on line

In 2021, ERN will tell you a story in pictures…. but which one??

….the story of the restoration of ecological continuity in France, of course !

Please support our project before December 18

In 2021, our association ERN is going to realize a series of several short films, on the policy of restoration of the ecological continuity in France * : ” For free and living rivers: erase, modify and avoid ” (Project n°1)

To conduct its project, ERN has been selected among others in the framework of MobBiodiv’2020 by the Ministry of Ecological Transition and the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB).

Until December 18, citizens can vote to elect a “Coup de coeur du public” among the 47 projects.

Watch our trailer here

VOTE : Did you like it?  Just click here and vote for ERN’s project n°1 “Erase, Modify, Avoid – for living rivers” (Attention, to vote, you have to go to the very bottom of the page!). Thanks !

 

* Indeed, France is a leader in Europe in restoring ecological continuity in particular by erasing small and large cross-cutting structures. Since 1997, it has acquired recognized know-how through innovative policies and major projects. The period 2020-2022 will be marked by large-scale river restoration projects on an international scale: the removal of two large dams on the Sélune and the complete reconfiguration of the Poutès dam on the Haut Allier.
It is to tell and share the French experience that ERN has planned to produce a series of audiovisual modules for the general public, as well as micro-videos for social networks. Broadcasting is planned on a national and international scale.

 

Join the global call to protect rivers !

Whether you are an individual, association, or other organization, you can join International Rivers’ call for river conservation. ERN has signed it.

To learn more, and possibly sign, click on: https://www.rivers4recovery.org

Restitution of the AMBER project: webinar video, magazine

The June 29th webinar “Smart Ways to improve connectivity river” was a great success. If you missed the event and want to watch some presentations again, you can now watch the webinar video online.

One of the main outputs of AMBER is the Pan-European Atlas of In-Stream Barriers. It contains information on 630,000 barriers including not only large dams, but also hundreds of thousands of smaller weirs, ramps, fords and culverts. However, AMBER researchers have found that more than one third of barriers are unrecorded, bringing the total to well over 1 million. Of these 1 million, over 100,000 are obsolete barriers deteriorating Europe’s rivers. This scale of river fragmentation is alarming and makes Europe the most fragmented river landscape in the world, with hardly any unfragmented, free-flowing rivers left. more : https://amber.international/our-research-finds-at-least-100000-obsolete-barriers-are-fragmenting-and-deteriorating-europes-rivers/  

To finish the 4-year AMBER project, EU-funded under the Horizon 2020 initiative, a magazine Let it flow | Reconnecting People with Rivers  was produced. Throughout this magazine, the Amber project shares results, thoughts, and ambitions for the future. Inside, is illustrated the issues of river fragmentation and restoration in Europe and abroad and what can be done to tackle these challenges.


For France, EDF (national electricity compagny)  and CNSS (National Conservatory of Wild Salmon) were partners in the project, notably to study the smolt downstream migration  the reservoir. The reconfiguration of the Poutès dam and its stakes are widely presented in the video presentation of the AMBER program (2min out of the 4.50min video). Video soon available and preview at 3h’42min’40sec of the webinar video.

Plus d’infos https://amber.international/