The litany in Perpignan had little to do with the tradition and cultivation of religious customs, but it certainly made an impression. For the first time in 150 years farmers and Catholic clergy gathered in the town just 30km from the Franco-Spanish border last Saturday to ask Saint Goderick, the patron saint of farmers, to bring rain to the Catalonia region. The situation is very serious due to the drought that has been plaguing the region for the past few months. However, it is not the only region of the country facing a problem. And in other large parts of France, groundwater reserves have been depleted and the government is worried. Is there a risk of a second summer of drought?

The rainfall report for the summer months he is hopeless. Since 1959, when meteorological phenomena began to be recorded, there has never been such a long period without rain in the winter in France, as announced by the national meteorological service Météo-France. This led to an unprecedented dryness of the soil, which was already weakened by the severe water shortage of the previous summer. March rains improved the situation in one part of the country. In southern France, however, there is still more drought than normal, according to Météo-France.

First measures by the French government

Meteorologists argue that the cause of the recent water shortage it was a barometric high which kept rainfall away from France for weeks. However, as a study presented in February by France’s National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) shows, the increase in temperature linked to climate change in Europe is causing high barometric pressures to expand, making the phenomenon worse.

Due to severe water shortages in the south of France, certain restrictions have been put into effect, such as the ban on watering gardens and sports stadiums, filling swimming pools and washing cars. These restrictions are unprecedented for this time of year. French President Emmanuel Macron also called for water conservation at the national level. “We have had a dry winter and at this critical moment we do not have enough water to fill our reservoirs,” he said. “So we know that like last summer we will face shortage problems.” Rather than short-term management of the problem, early planning is better.

Obligation to Saint Goderic

The initiative for the litany in Perpignan was started by winemaker Georges Pouille. “It rains everywhere in France, just not here,” he complains. According to the first vicar of the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, Abbot Christophe Lefebvre, the procession started from the cathedral and passed through the historic gate of the city to the river Tet. People carried the relics of the patron with them of Goderick the peasants. The 100 or so believers who took part stopped at the almost dried up riverbed. The procession is a revival of the Visigoth tradition from the Middle Ages.

Prolonged dry spells cause many problems for winegrowers in the Mediterranean region. The French Institute of Viticulture since 2021 has dedicated a study to the reorientation of viticulture in the face of climate change. Recommendations include the adaptation of production and water use by winegrowers to regional climate data. Cultivating more climate-resistant varieties and taking steps to make viticulture as climate-neutral as possible are also recommended. In the long term the wine sector in France will have to adapt to climate change, according to the Ministry of Agriculture in Paris. The government wants to help create a strategy for this.