Tag: France

How Paris Tackled Pollution in the River Seine

River Seine clean-up

Following a century-long ban due to pollution, Parisians and tourists can now swim in designated areas of the River Seine.

By Kelly Yu

The iconic River Seine opened its banks to swimmers on July 5, marking the end of a swimming ban that had been in place since 1923 due to severe contamination in its waters.

For decades, the river has been polluted by E.coli, enterococci bacteria and other contaminants, with industrial waste, sewage overflow, and urban runoff making it unsafe for swimming.

Paris’s outdated combined sewer system, dating back to city planner Baron Georges-Eugène Haussmann’s 19th-century city planning, allowed untreated wastewater to flow directly into the river during heavy rainfall.

By the 1970s, about 60% of the city’s sewage was being dumped untreated into the river, and fish species had decreased to just three.

The historic reopening followed a €1.4 billion (US$1.6 billion) cleanup operation to make the river swimmable in time for the 2024 Paris Olympics, with open-water swimmers and triathletes competing in its specially treated waters.

Bastien Xu, a Parisian businessman who was among the first to take a dip when the ban was lifted, described it as a symbolic moment for the city: “The Seine River has always been seen as romantic, but now people can actually swim in it instead of just looking at it.”

“I was really excited. I felt lucky that we can swim there now after it wasn’t allowed for 100 years. My older French neighbors were envious because they never got the chance when they were young,” Xu told Earth.Org.

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The myth and reality of the Parisian woman

The actor Arletty, seen here in the film Hôtel du Nord, was one of many working-class French stars of the era (Credit: Alamy)

There is now a whole literary genre devoted to her mysterious allure. So what is the true essence of the Parisienne – asks Paris born-and-bred Agnès Poirier – and how did she evolve?

By Agnes Poirier

French women – Parisiennes in particular – have no idea of the fascination they inspire in foreigners – until the day they discover in a bookshop abroad the vast amount of literature dedicated to scrutinising their every move and mood. Sometimes written by Parisian women living abroad, or by foreigners living in Paris, this literary genre and lucrative niche market aims at educating its readers in Parisianisme and its many secrets.

Among them, in just the last few years: How to be a Parisian, Wherever You Are by Caroline de Maigret, Sophie Mas, Audrey Diwan and Anne Berest; Dress Like a Parisian by Aloïs Guinut; Parisian Chic by Inès de la Fressange and Sophie Gachet; and the recently published The New Parisienne by Lindsey Tramuta.

Tramuta’s interesting hybrid work – part coffee-table book with beautiful pictures and illustrations, part political pamphlet, and part guide book with addresses and tips – makes for an alluring proposal. The author wants to “lift the veil on the mythologised Parisian woman – white, lithe, ever fashionable, and recast the women of Paris as they truly are”. To do this she profiles forty Parisiennes who “don’t fit the mould”, from Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo to cookie maker Moko Hirayama, translator Poonam Chawla and many others – including political figures, entrepreneurs, influencers, designers, artists, writers and athletes.

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