The question had never really been asked. But the elected officials of the capital will still clarify the situation. At the next Paris Council, which is to be held from May 21 to 24, a deliberation should be put to the vote on the subject of swimming in the Seine.
As it stands, the draft deliberation declares that diving in the river will be free for the general public within the three sites supposed to open to the public in 2025. These are located in the 12th arrondissement, near Bercy; in 4th, at the level of the Marie arm; and in the 15th century, in the Grenelle arm.
For several months, even years now, Anne Hidalgo has been promising that in the summer of 2025, the Seine could be invaded by swimming enthusiasts. The mayor (PS) of Paris has herself planned to literally throw herself into the water, a priori in June, before the marathon swimming and triathlon events of the Olympic Games are held there this summer.
“The approval of the principle of free access to the three bathing sites and the authorization to submit any administrative request relating to the construction of three sites (12th, 15th and Paris Center) will thus be submitted to the Council for a vote”.
After research work carried out with Apur (Parisian town planning workshop), the Parisian executive initially identified five potential swimming sites. However, only three locations were ultimately selected. “These bathing sites should then allow residents to reclaim the river, and finally respond to the city’s necessary adaptation to climate change and predicted future heatwaves,” explains the draft deliberation.
“Swimming will include contiguous areas on the river bank, on which facilities will be installed to facilitate swimming. Swimming areas will be demarcated, secure, signposted and monitored. Floating pontoons will be installed in particular to facilitate the monitoring of swimmers and to prevent swimming outside the demarcated area,” specifies the text.
The only pebble in Anne Hidalgo’s shoe, certain doubts remain as to the quality of the water in the Parisian river. The Austerlitz basin, just inaugurated, should help to partly resolve the problem, by preventing wastewater from flowing into the Seine during heavy rainfall. Many other measures are also being finalized.
If all this proves insufficient, viruses or microorganisms could proliferate, according to Françoise Lucas, professor of microbial ecology at the University of Paris-Est-Créteil in the Water, Environment and Urban Systems laboratory. The professor is also waiting to see “the performance of the new installations”.
