the essential
The Comité Causse Comtal association was created in 1996. It works in the area that constitutes the Causse Comtal and ensures respect for its environment and in particular its groundwater network.
An alert was given by one of its members, Jean-Claude Garrigou, during his conferences given in 2019 and 2022 on the theme of causse water. It was concluded that the need to control the biological, mineral and toxicological qualities of these waters is necessary, in order to prevent possible pollution.
An analysis of the water taken from the resurgence at the top of Salles-la-Source carried out last September, during a period of low water flow, at the expense of the association, gives results, published by Labo Aveyron, which show four unusual microbiological contaminations which make it unfit for consumption: the water is not drinkable. What is most worrying is the presence of Escherichia Coli bacteria from human or animal feces, which must necessarily come from faulty wastewater treatment (septic tank or ineffective treatment plant). This is rather recent and local pollution. In the present case, on the causse in a very fragile karst environment, the soil has very little filtering.
“Faced with this contamination which worries us, we must sound the alarm, warn the competent authorities and make them face their responsibilities. We will inform the ARS, the Adour Garonne Agency as well as the Salles-la-Source Town Hall of the results of this analysis. Is this pollution permanent or accidental? Continuous monitoring of water quality must be implemented as well as a search for causes in order to define corrective and preventive measures. worry the members of the association. Aside from these contaminations, the analysis describes moderately hard water, with balanced Ph, little polluted by nitrates from agricultural fertilizers and rich in calcium which would be good for health but less good for the pipes.
However, these results should be taken with caution because they reflect a situation at a specific time and do not take into account phosphates, potassium or other toxic products not analyzed. No trace of waste oil has been reported either, the risk of which was mentioned during land-based pollution around twenty years ago. This caused the cessation of the use of the water springing from Salles-la-Source as drinking water and its replacement with water from Aubrac.
“But we could hope in the near future, by showing a little more interest in this common good, a gift of nature, to make it into water of good food quality. Thanks to the Causse Comtal which collects and transports this inexhaustible source of water” conclude the committee members.
