For lovers of swimming in the northwest of Vienne or of ski lifts, Lake Moncontour should reopen this summer, at the end of June. For the moment, this news is to be put in the conditional because it is still dry. He was emptied in early spring to remove the mud that lined the bottom of the lake. 31,000 m³ were released, a layer of about 70 cm, from this lake which extends over no less than 10 hectares. The State has validated the filling operations but with a binding reservation. The municipality cannot fully open the four water intakes which allow you to draw from the Dive du Nord.
Drought delays opening
The Northern Dive levels are worrying according to the services of the prefecture. “They are very low and there is a risk of this river drying up, of having a weak flow. We are already on alert measures and restrictions in this basin. This year we had almost no groundwater recharge. We haven’t seen that since 2019 or 2017,” says Catherine Aupert, head of the water and biodiversity service of the departmental directorate of territories (DDT).
We want to avoid aggravating the situation on this river – Catherine Aupert, head of the water and biodiversity service of the departmental directorate of territories.
State services therefore do not want to risk jeopardizing the Dive du Nord to speed up the opening of Lake Moncontour. “We want to avoid aggravating the situation on this watercourse. There is a risk of conflict of use with other potential uses of the basin, particularly those related to agriculture“, she specifies.
Do not relive the closures of the last two summers
If all goes well, the lake of Moncontour will therefore be able to open in 2 months according to the mayor, Edouard Renaud. But no matter, he has to open, according to him: “We just want to open this year. It’s been two years in a row that we can’t function properly. In 2020, it was Covid and last year, cyanobacteria.“The municipality financed the cleaning operations of the lake, to the tune of 213,000 euros, but delegates the commercial exploitation of the site. However, if the mayor understands the decision of the prefecture, he says to himself concerned about their financial health.