Category: Current Affairs

THE latest figures from Météo-France show that summer 2022 was the second warmest on record, with many parts of the country seeing record breaking temperatures.

Météo-France say that for the summer months of June, July and August the average temperature was up 2.3C in comparison to the average of 1991 to 2020.

This year comes just behind 2003, when the temperatures were up by 2.7C, in comparison to normal.

France also experienced a record number of days that were characterised as a heatwave, with 15 to 19 June, the 12 to 25 July and the 31 July to 13 August falling under this characterisation, for a total of 23 days of vagues de chaleur (against 22 days in 2003).

Brittany sees record temperatures

Many areas of France saw their highest ever temperatures, with parts of Brittany seeing 40C for the first time.

The same temperature was hit in Nîmes in June, July and August – a temperature series never recorded before.

Tropical nights on Mediterranean coast

On the Mediterranean coast, especially along la Riviera, night time temperatures did not get below 20C for 56 consecutive nights.

Météo-France say that the warm waters of the Mediterranean are a main cause of the high temperatures and fear that such could become the norm during the summer.

The map shows the difference between the highs of 2022 in comparison to the existing highest temperatures.

Drought across France

Drought conditions across France saw a 25% drop in the average amount of summer rainfall in comparison to the norm, worsening an already difficult situation in many areas of the country.

Looking across the full year from January to July, Météo-France say that water levels are 33% down across the country, with many parts of France currently facing water restrictions.

For example, here in the Dordogne homeowners are not allowed to wash their cars, refill swimming pools or water their gardens between 8h and 20h.

The long, hot summer also led to major forest fires in the south west of France.

RUMBLES of thunder, a few drops of rain but the sun still shines across the Dordoge as summer comes to an end and people’s thoughts turn to la rentrée.

Late afternoon across the Dordogne countryside as the shadows lengthen.

Irrigation pipes run through the chestnut trees with watering only undertaken outside the warmest times of the day.

Figs ripening, ready for breakfast.

The maize field has been harvested as the morning sun rises over the Dordogne.

Dark thunder clouds rolled in from the south but little rain fell.

THE Dordogne chasse and préfecture has published the number of sanglier, deer and stag it aims to hunt for the season 2022/23.

The plan de chasse outlines the target figures of 18,700 to 24,300 sanglier, 17,500 to 18,850 deer and 2,880 to 3,710 stag for the forthcoming winter season.

There are currently around 17,000 hunters registered with the Fédération Départementale des Chasseurs de la Dordogne (FDC 24).

The figures are reached with the assistance of national bodies and aim to strike a balance between protecting the agricultural and forestry sector from damage, and the overall number of wild animals in the département.

In comparison to other areas of France, the Dordogne has one of the most extensive plan de chasse, with some départements not producing any projections.

For example, in the neighbouring départements of the Lot and the Creuse they say this year they aim to target up to 11,000 deer and in the south of France, the Var plan to kill around 4,000 deer.

The hunting season in the Dordogne is set to open on 11 September, 2022 and run until 28 February, 2023 and details of other areas of France are available online.

The Dordogne plan de chasse can be read below.

A NUMBER of forest fires broke out across the Dordogne in the past few days, but fortunately the pompiers were able to bring them all under control.

A cigarette butt is being blamed for the start of a fire that started at Saint-Jean-de-Côle near to Salignac-Eyvigues in the east of the Dordogne.

Over the weekend a large fire in la Double forest near La Roche-Chalais and Eygurande required 230 pompiers and saw around 90 heactares of land burnt.

Around 20 hectares of grassland was burnt near Beaumont-du-Périgord that took around two hours to bring under control, whilst a fire on a camp site near Monpazier saw the pompiers take around an hour to deal with it.

By far the strangest incident was a rotisserie truck shedding hot coals that started a number of road side fires along the route between Saint-Avit-Senieur and Molières.

Water was dropped on the fires by a helicopter and 60 pompiers dealt with the flames, with local officials saying around 25 hectares were burnt.

How many fires in the Dordogne?

In total there have been more than 50 fires in the Dordogne since 1 August, 2022, with the pompiers soon getting on top of the fires but there has still been more than a 100 hectares of land burnt.

A number of pompiers from the Dordogne have been deployed to a large fire that has broken out in Gironde and the Landes, which has already seen 6,000 hectares burnt and 10,000 people evacuated, with 17 homes lost to the flames.

The Dordogne Préfecture has been stressing the importance of taking care when out and about with the current dry conditions, especially as nine out of ten fires are caused by human actions.

On Wednesday 17 August, 2022, the Dordogne Préfecture announced a relaxation of the warning level for the risk of forest fire in the region..

AN explosion took place at the Eurenco factory in Bergerac, with the Préfet de la Dordogne saying eight people were injured.

The explosion took place in the early afternoon of 3 August, 2022 with a fire occurring in a storage area, with the most severely injured person being taken by helicopter to Bordeaux hospital.

The others injured were being treated locally and all other personnel were evacuated from the factory.

The cause of the explosion is not yet known but the authorities say the fire was contained and that there was no risk to people in the neighbouring area.

Eurenco is a manufacturer of explosives, propellants and fuels to both the military and civil sector covering oil and gas drilling and mining.

The Eurenco factory is found on the main D660 road into Bergerac, just beyond the busy Creysse shopping centre and about ten minutes away from Bergerac Airport.

Eurenco has its headquarters in Sorgues, south east France, and alongside its factory in Bergerac, it has others in Belgium and Sweden.

The factory in Bergerac is classified as a Seveso facility, which means it falls under strict EU safety requirements due to it being an industrial site that handles dangerous materials.

Update 9 August, 2022: Following an investigation into the explosion by Eurenco, the company says that a flash caused by work on some piping caused the resulting three explosions.

Le parquet, the equivalent of a public prosecutor, of Bergerac is set to undertake its own investigation into the cause of the explosion.

THE France Services network offers help and advice on French paperwork and administration, covering things such as healthcare, tax payments, registering vehicles and finding a job.

The government backed initiative provides more than 2,300 offices across France, promising local people that everyone can reach a France Services location within 30 minutes.

Trained staff will be available to offer advice, but also online services will be available, which again staff will be able to help guide you through, especially as more services seem to be based on the internet.

Map of France Services offices

An online map is available to help you find a service close to you, start by entering your post code and commune, from there you can narrow down a location.

Local to me I was able to find an office about 15 minutes drive away, with details of the opening times, an exact location on the map and a telephone number and email address I could use to contact them.

France Services advice

The idea behind the initiative is that the staff behind the counter of each France Services office are able to handle initial enquiries related to the main French public bodies.

So you can get advice on declaring your taxes, driving licence or identity card, help with job hunting, reimbursement of health charges, questions about retirement and childcare and education.

If your questions are particularly complicated or involved then staff are able to contact services directly and speak to staff with detailed experience and advice.

You can walk in to the offices without an appointment, but I’d make sure you have as much relevant paperwork as possible, including a recent tax return as this is often used for eligibility questions, so that you don’t have to return at a later date.

France Services in the Dordogne

The opening of five new France Services offices was recently announced by the authorities in the Dordogne, bringing the total in the département to 35.

The new offices include Montpon-Ménestérol and Thiviers, with the existing France Services offices being available in towns and villages such as Mnnpazier, Lalinde, Le Bugue, Nontron and Brantôme.

NATIONAL weather service, Météo-France, has updated its calculations for the average temperature in France, increasing it to 12.97C.

Météo-France has said that it will draw on new readings from the period 1991-2020, as opposed to 1981-2010, to base future forecasts on and to study the impact of climate change on the country.

And it is this data that has shown an increase in the average temperature for France of 0.42C, up from 12.55C.

Every decade since 1970 has been warmer on average than the previous, with the period from 2011 to 2020 seeing an increase in average temperatures of 0.6C, the steepest rise since 1900.

Temperatures in French cities

An interesting comparison Météo-France has undertaken is to see what the climate of major cities of France is like now in comparison to 1970, saying that Strasbourg is now similar to Lyon, nearly 500 km further south and Lille is now similar to Rennes.

Average rainfall levels across France have remained stable from 1981 to 2010 and 1991 to 2020, although regional difference have been noted including the south experiencing more rain than usual and the north of France less.

With 2019 seeing temperatures hit 46C in the south of France, and 2020 the warmest year on record in France, being aware of what measures we can take to help tackle climate change seem to be increasingly important.

IT is six years since the UK voted to leave the European Union, with its supporters promising a new future for the country and promising that ‘nothing would change’.

For many on this side of the Channel it has been a time of great unease, at first wondering what the future might bring, with rumours and possible scenarios leading to many a sleepless night.

As the weeks, months and years progressed it felt like the sands were forever changing beneath our feet as questions remained unanswered.

Constant questions day after day

Would British people retain the right to work in France and the EU? Would pensions and health cover continue? Would British children living in the EU have access to education in the UK?

How easy would it be to travel with your French family members to the UK? Could we ever move back to the UK? Would it be possible to bring older parents to France for long term support?

What changes would there be for those living in France and working in the UK? Would past qualifications be recognised as they were before? Could we still bring our dog on holiday?

Many of these questions have been answered, some not, but invariably it has resulted in more cost, increased paperwork and extended periods of time worrying about things that used to cause little concern.

Elections highlight the loss

And it was the recent French elections that brought home to me that for many they have no representation in the corridors of power, on either side of the Channel.

For years I have been writing about the 15 year rule and how British people lost their right to vote back in the UK.

And it feels that I’ve been writing for about 15 years that this rule would be quashed and that a right to vote for those who have been outside the UK long term would be able to vote once again.

The wait continues.

But the Brexit vote has also cut any representation British people had with local democracy, cutting them adrift from having any influence on their day-to-day life.

Clearly the presidential and legislative votes of the past couple of months are only open to French nationals, but that vote on 23 June, 2016, has also stripped the vote many enjoyed at a local level.

The ‘shadow people’

The role of the mayor in local French politics is very different to that of the UK, they have much more influence and connection with the different levels of government in France.

They can be a helpful route to ensure the voice of local people is heard, especially in the countryside, but that is now gone for British people and it almost feels like we are ‘shadow people’ still with a voice that is not being heard.

Gaining French nationality is one way around this issue, but for many they are still worried about what changes to legislation might bring, especially if a future UK government changes pension and health rules for dual nationals or those who have left the country.

I already know of people who have decided to leave France and return to the UK due to the many questions and concerns that they were struggling to find an answer for.

Others have been hit by the 90 day rule, meaning they have to squeeze all they want to do into a shorter period of time, missing out on different experiences and being aware that they have a strict deadline by which they have to cross the border back to the UK.

It is easy for politicians and commentators to say that it is ‘time to move on’ as none of them have seen their day-to-day life filled with ‘what ifs and maybes’ whilst still trying to enjoy life in France.

Time may be a great healer, but for many the referendum vote remains a painful sore.

Update 16/07/2020 – France’s Prime Minister Jean Castex has announced that masks will be made mandatory in closed public spaces from 20 July, as the health minister, Olivier Véran, announced that Covid-19 cases are once again on the rise.

FRENCH president, Emmanuel Macron, has said he wants to see the mandatory wearing of face masks in enclosed public spaces, such as shops, to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

During a televised interview marking the fête nationale the president said that the authorities were seeing a rise in Covid-19 infections and that mask wearing, as well as hand cleaning and social distancing were key tools.

“I would like to make masks mandatory in all enclosed public spaces,” Macron said in the interview, with the plan set to come into force from 1 August.

The virus reproduction rate, the “R” ratio, had again risen above one in France, Macron said, and his message came after doctors warned of a possible second wave of infections, maybe in the coming weeks.

Any second wave could increase pressure on the hospital service, but Macron said the country was ready.

“We are organised on the ground, to allow us to deal with an upsurge, if it comes,” he said.

Related: Bergerac Airport brings in Covid-19 measures