Situation in France Key facts and figures about hydropower

EAU ET MILIEUX AQUATIQUES
Bureau écologie
des milieux
aquatiques
Key facts and
figures about
hydropower
issues- Situation in
France
Key facts and figures about hydropower
issues
Situation in France
EAU ET MILIEUX AQUATIQUES
Hydropower production in France
Bureau écologie
des milieux
aquatiques
Key facts and
figures about
hydropower
issues- Situation in
France
-
Production : 70 Twh / year
Power : 25 400 MW
2 000 hydropower plants, of all size
Most productive sites are already equipped
Residual potential for development : mainly small
hydropower new projects + re-engineering of existing
plants.
EAU ET MILIEUX AQUATIQUES
Designation of AWB-HMWB
~ 600 WB designated as AWB or HMWB (10% of
the WB)
Bureau écologie
des milieux
aquatiques
Key facts and
figures about
hydropower
issues- Situation in
France
Amongst, 150 directly linked to hydropower
use
EAU ET MILIEUX AQUATIQUES
The French classification system of rivers –
2 lists
Ist list = high status water bodies + biological pools
which are necessary to reach good status + main
migratory axes for long-distance migratory fishes
Bureau écologie
des milieux
aquatiques
Key facts and
figures about
hydropower
issues- Situation in
France
2nd list = river stretches where it is necessary to ensure
sufficient sediment transport and circulation of
migratory fishes
EAU ET MILIEUX AQUATIQUES
Consequences for equipments on rivers
Bureau écologie
des milieux
aquatiques
Key facts and
figures about
hydropower
issues- Situation in
France
1st list = new equipment creating obstacle to
ecological
continuity
are
forbidden/
existing
equipment shall ensure ecological continuity at the
moment of the renewal of their act of
authorisation/concession
2nd list = equipments shall be managed and
maintained in order to ensure ecological continuity
within a period of 5 years following the act of
classification
EAU ET MILIEUX AQUATIQUES
Regulation on minimal flow
Downstream minimal flow = must guarantee in
permanence life, circulation and reproduction of
aquatic species in rivers
Bureau écologie
des milieux
aquatiques
Key facts and
figures about
hydropower
issues- Situation in
France
“floor” minimal flow = shall not go below 1/10th (1/20th
under certain situation) of the inter-annual average
flow
EAU ET MILIEUX AQUATIQUES
Open questions for R&D
Sediment transport : which method to identify rivers
where it is necessary to restore sediment transport in
order to reach good status? With which management
objectives (all sediments, gravels only….)?
Bureau écologie
des milieux
aquatiques
Key facts and
figures about
hydropower
issues- Situation in
France
Sediment transport : identification of Best Available
Techniques (BAT) for restoring sediment transport at the
scale of an individual equipment,
Minimal flow : which biological method to assess the
value?