Mobilizing to preserve the "water" resource near the beaches of the French Riviera

"This project is outstanding, both for the content of the messages (pragmatic and conflict-free) and the resources employed, which are ideal for their targets. "
Philippe Chaniol

An unbroken series of drought years have demonstrated that water is not an inexhaustible resource. In the Var, a département that is particularly hit by the shortage of water, ADEE (Association for Environmental Development and Education) has been conducting familiarization campaigns on this topic for the last three years, among schoolchildren and the public at large. It wants to intensify its action in 2007-2008 in the east of the département particularly towards the towns of Fréjus, Saint-Raphaël and the villages of the Fayence country. It has a twin message. The idea is to explain that the tapping and treatment of water demand the implementation of major technical resources and that the water resource, which is fragile and rare, must be conserved and reasonably exploited. The association sets three targets for its project dubbed "H₂0".

Concrete examples, drawn from the regional context

The first is to draw up an educational program aimed at primary and junior high schools. It will involve class activities and field trips. At the same time, ADEE proposes to create teaching materials designed to help the teachers carry out their project independently. Highlight: a folder on the Sigagnole, a typical waterway of the region, and on its use through the centuries. The system is supplemented by a film dedicated to the domestic cycle of water and related professions: from freshwater tapping to the discharge of treated water in the natural environment, its whole itinerary will be explained.

The third aspect of the project: "water days", organized at the end of the school year, will familiarize the public, children and adults, with local water related problems, accompanied by lectures, exhibitions and workshops.

The Veolia foundation has allocated a 10 000 euros grant to back the H₂O project alongside the Paca regional council and the general council of the Var, the Water Board and the Diren.