The world is officially one month away from the start of the 2024 Summer Olympics — and new tests have just revealed that one of the Games’ main attractions, the Seine in Paris, is not yet ready. For the third week in a row, samples from the Seine show that the waterway, scheduled to host some of the Olympic swimming events, contains unsafe levels of bacteria linked to fecal matter.
The latest tests from the Eau de Paris monitoring group, conducted between June 17 and 23, show that E. coli bacteria, which is often associated with fecal matter and can cause diarrhea, urinary tract infections, pneumonia and sepsis, 10 times was above acceptable values, AFP said, based on results released by the Paris mayor's office. At no point have the values fallen below the upper limit, AFP said.
Eau de Paris
Enterococci bacteria have also been found in the river water for weeks, and although levels were better at the last test, they were still unsafe.
“Water quality continues to deteriorate due to unfavorable hydrological conditions, low sunshine, below-average temperatures and pollution upstream,” the mayor's office said, AFP reported.
Eau de Paris
Rainfall has only exacerbated the problem as it washes sewage and wastewater into the waterway. The summer sun and heat help reduce bacteria levels, the report according to the test results, but heavy rainfall such as that which occurred during the week of June 18 only increases the number of bacteria.
The Olympics, which start on July 26, will include triathlon events from July 30 and marathon swimming on August 8 and 9 in the Seine near the Alexandre III Bridge. Although the city has spent $1.5 billion cleaning up the waterway, it has so far failed to eliminate the pollution and ease concerns among athletes and locals.
Many Parisians had launched a social media campaign known as #JeChieDansLaSeineLe23Juin in which they threatened to defecate in the river on June 23. The event, the phrase of which translates to “I sh*t in the Seine on June 23,” did not take place, although many still express outrage at officials pushing the river events.
The organizers of the Olympic Games are not giving up either from the established schedule.
“Things will calm down in the second half of July,” said Tony Estanguet, head of the Paris 2024 organising committee.
“At some point, we will have summer weather,” added Marc Guillaume, responsible for the Seine. “Then the plan will come into full effect.”
