To use or not to use water reserves, a debate among farmers

No question of approaching. Wednesday, July 17, the gendarmes are monitoring the surroundings of the megabasins of Mauzé-sur-le-Mignon (Deux-Sèvres), used by five farms. For David Paillat, farmer, it is the guarantee of having water even during the drought in the summer. “Planting beans requires a lot of euros from the start. (…) Securing water also secures the result”he explains.

About twenty kilometers away, Luc Suret has opted for another method. He pumps from the water table punctually according to his needs. With the rain at the beginning of the year, his plots do not need watering. He has changed crops and avoids those that require too much water. “It’s just adapting our production to what society wants, that is to say healthy, balanced, varied foods.”he says. Two farms, two agricultural models with, at the heart of the debate, the sharing of water and adaptation to climate change.