What to expect from this weekend’s ‘mega-reservoir’ protests in France

More than 3,000 police are on alert ahead of major protests called by anti-’mega-reservoir’ activists in Deux-Sèvres, with two marches taking place despite a ban from local authorities.

Between 6,000 and 8,000 people have gathered at the ‘Village de l'eau’ water camp in Melle, and are set to take part in the protests today (July 19) and tomorrow. The ‘festival atmosphere’ camp is set to be in place until Sunday, July 21.

Yet, police have been on high alert after the intense violence seen at the nearby Sainte-Soline mega-reservoir base (just 15 km away), where major protests took place 15 months ago. 

Read also: Why are water mega-reservoirs the cause of so much tension in France? 

Then, protests escalated into violence between activists and police (who threw tear gas), leaving many injured and one man in a coma.

The Ligue des droits de l'Homme (Human Rights League), said that there had been “excessive and indiscriminate use of force” by the gendarmes at the time, and “obstruction of assistance” to the injured. The police denied this.

Read also: Several injured in ‘water basin protest’ in France: what happened?
Read also: Man in coma after ‘intolerable violence’ at France reservoir protests 

‘Water hoarding’?

Farmers say that the mega-reservoirs are necessary to ensure they have a continuous supply of water during the hotter months, and proponents say that the reservoirs will mean farmers do not take from the under-pressure water table in the summer.

Yet, because the reservoirs still pump from the water table in winter, critics accuse them of ‘water hoarding’, and say they are an environmentally-damaging ‘short-term’ measure that will are delaying the inevitable farming transition to less water-intensive practices and crops.

Read also: What are France’s ‘mega reservoirs’ and why are they so controversial? 
Read also: Go-ahead for controversial ‘mega reservoirs’ in west France 

Protest plans

The protests include representatives and supporters from more than 120 organisations, associations, trade unions and collectives. 

This includes activist groups Bassines Non Merci (BNM), Soulèvements de la Terre, Attac, Union syndicale Solidaires, Confédération paysanne, and hydrologists group Scientists in Rebellion.

They are calling for a moratorium on all mega-reservoir building, and a re-evaluation of their use and environmental impact.

Two protests have been announced:

• July 19: Saint-Sauvant (Vienne), on the site of the future reservoir. A ‘people's march and bicycle convoy’ is taking place.

• July 20: La Rochelle (Charente-Maritime). Organisers are calling for ‘people to take kayaks, paddles and other inflatable boats’ to blockade the agro-industrial port ‘in a carnival atmosphere’.

The protest at Saint-Sauvant was already underway on the morning of July 19, with the activists documenting the event online. Les Soulèvements de la Terre has said that some were blocked from the event, but that many other activists managed to leave and begin the march.

The activists are not purely organising protests; the ‘village’ is also holding workshops, panel discussions, and debates. Swedish activist Greta Thunberg has reportedly been among the attendees, the AFP reported on July 18.

Protests on track despite bans

The organisers have said that their protests are still set to go ahead, despite both demonstrations having been banned by the Vienne and Charente-Maritime prefectures. 

The Charente-Maritime prefecture said it feared that protesters would overwhelm the town centre (which is very popular with tourists during the holiday season). Similarly, the Vienne prefecture justified its decision by saying that previous “undeclared demonstrations by these same organisers led to violent outbursts”.

Police say they are expecting 6,000-8,000 people to attend in total, of which 600-1,000 are feared to be “radical and violent”, and 200 are expected to come from abroad.

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin has already said that “more than a hundred ultra-left activists’ from neighbouring European countries have been banned from entering France” to take part.

Similarly, more than 5,000 people have already been stopped by police since the movement ‘village’ began, and 400 “dangerous objects” have been seized on the outskirts of Melle (Deux-Sèvres), the Niort public prosecutor told FranceInter on July 17.

Among the items seized were knives, iron bars, axes, pétanque balls, fireworks, and flammable liquids.

Counter-protests possible

And local farmers’ unions have not ruled out counter-protests. 

The Coordination rurale (CR), meanwhile called on its members in the Vienne region, as well as in the Dordogne and Lot-et-Garonne, to “defend the region's farms against environmentalist hooligans”.

A group of around 100 farmers had gathered this morning (July 19) near Melle, for a proposed discussion with the heads of the ‘water village’, said CR national president Véronique Le Floc'h.

But even farming unions are not all in agreement on the issue. The Confédération paysanne has denounced the mega-reservoirs as a “source of inequality in access to water”, and is taking part in the ‘village de l’eau’ actions, as is the Mouvement de défense des exploitants familiaux (Modef).