Normally, the kayak rental kiosk on the port of Sucé-sur-Erdre (Loire-Atlantique) is bustling with activity. But since the publication on July 28 of a municipal decree prohibiting leisure navigation, the boats remain on the bank. The cause of this forced rest: the presence of cyanobacteria, micro-algae which can be toxic to humans, in the Erdre. At the end of July, the Edenn joint union noted 19.9 micrograms per liter, almost twice as much as the alert threshold. This proliferation is largely due to high temperatures.
A significant drop in activity
From Saint-Félix, to Nantes, at a place called La Poupinière, it is therefore forbidden to sail aboard a boat that can turn around, such as a kayak or a paddle, and renting is prohibited. In the middle of summer, the measure makes holidaymakers and professionals cringe. “I wanted to take advantage of the good weather, the calm, to go for a walk”regrets Vianney, who hoped to be able to rent a canoe. “The Erdre is still dirty, but it’s true that there, it’s worse than usual”, he concedes.
– Ninnog Louis
Instead of the trip on the water, it will therefore be “reading, and a bit of sport”. An alternative that cannot be offered by Antoine, from Floating, a boat and canoe rental company on the island of Versailles in Nantes. “With this ban, we lose around 40% of our activity” points to the employee. “People are very keen on kayaking, the weather is exceptionally nice and it’s a pleasure to be on the water. They understand that we can’t offer it to them at the moment, but it’s a shame to not work normally.”
Athletes penalized
“We are in danger, necessarily”, adds Romain, the boss. And the situation may not improve any time soon, as the weather is expected to remain hot and dry in the coming weeks. “We don’t expect to be able to work normally in August, or even in September.” The entrepreneur would have liked a little more support from the public authorities. “We have no identified interlocutor, we apply the bans, that’s all. But it’s all navigation activity on the Erdre that is called into question. However, it’s the lungs of the city, without that, Nantes dies!”
A concern shared by nautical clubs on the banks of the Erdresuch as the Nantes Rowing Club. “We are organizing internships this week for young people, we had to adapt and offer other activities. The athletes have to train indoors, while the French championships will take place in September, we necessarily fear that this don’t penalize them”, warns Pierre-Louis Herpeux, one of the coaches. And the damage could be more lasting: “We are at the start of the season, we are going to have a hard time recruiting young people and getting them interested in our sport if we can no longer take them on the water”. New analyzes of the Erdre are well planned for mid-August, but professionals are struggling to imagine a quick return to normal.