SAINTE-CROIX du VERDON, France — At the beautiful southern French lake of Sainte-Croix-du-Verdon, travelers in pedal boats and on white water rafts — and the companies that welcome them — haveactually been buoyed by generous rains and great water management this spring.
After a lengthened dryspell last summertime, then another in the winterseason that followed, the when broken lakebeds are now perfectly watered. Dams are launching water into tanks on a constant schedule for activities in the lake.
But trip operators are still cautious.
“Rafting and kayaking is fantastic, however if tomorrow there is not enough water in the river, we will have to transform ourselves,” stated Antoine Coudray of Secret River Tours, that runs in the makesapigof of Verdon.
The synthetic lake of Sainte-Croix, a busy traveler touristattraction, is one of 3 tanks in the location constructed for 16 hydroelectric dams. The dams supply the southeastern area of Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur with 35% of its electricalpower requirements.
Human-caused environment modification is extending dryspells in southern France, significance the tanks are progressively drainedpipes to lower levels to keep the power generation and water supply required for neighboring towns and cities. It’s worrying those in the tourist market, who are working out how to keep their lakeside organizations afloat in the long term if water levels stay low or unforeseeable.
The 3 tank lakes in the location — Serre Ponçon, Castillon and Sainte-Croix — rapidly endedupbeing a draw for nature enthusiasts after their buildingandconstruction in the middle of the 20th century. They’re recognized for their crisp, clear waters in undisturbed valleys surrounded by high mountains. The area drawsin over 4.6 million visitors a year, the bulk of whom flock to the cool lakes throughout the summertime months.
Water levels in the tanks are set and handled by nationwide energy giant EDF, which runs the dams.
Last year, the low water levels from a