50 thousand cubic meters of wastewater entered the Seine (2 photos + 1 video)
Category: Interesting photo stories, PEGI 0+
3 June 2024
Well, friends, the hashtag JeChieDansLaSeineLe23Juin worked ahead of time, but still. There are less than two months left until the Olympics. 
The French had three pumps break down in the Yvelines department west of Paris. The town of Conflans-Saint-Honorine (Yvelines) suffered from a major environmental disaster. In recent weeks, due to a pumping system malfunction, 50 thousand cubic meters of sewage have spilled into the Seine.
Laurent Brosse, the mayor of the city, decided to file a complaint due to the pollution of the Seine River. “We want to find out who is responsible for the discharge of wastewater into the river. To do this, we are waiting for the results of the investigation,” he said.
“We treat 14 million cubic meters of wastewater per year at the treatment plant in Neuville-sur-Oise. Unfortunately, we find things in them that shouldn’t be there,” says Didier Meurs, Director General of the SIARP service.
He emphasizes that napkins, sanitary napkins, tampons and cotton swabs create big problems in the operation of wastewater treatment plants. “The astronomical amount of napkins is just a disaster,” he notes.
In Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, temporary pumps were installed to carry wastewater to the treatment plant, but they could not cope with the load.
With the triathlon set to begin on June 30, Paris authorities have invested some 1.4 billion euros ($1.5 billion) in updating the city's water infrastructure, including new water storage tanks and pumps. However, despite best efforts, latest tests carried out by water charity Surfrider showed that levels of E coli and enterococci in the Seine are higher than allowed by sporting federations and European bathing standards.
So by the time of the planned bathing of the mayor of Paris, the indicators will still increase.
