Gemapi of the Hérault Valley is preparing for the challenges of the future

Les ponts seront particulièrement inspectés.

A diagnosis is currently being carried out with a view to several maintenance projects.
 

Don't be overly surprised if, while walking along the banks of rivers these days, you encounter mysterious individuals dressed in fluorescent vests, frantically inspecting the state of the rivers. These are technicians from the Gemapi (Aquatic Environment Management and Flood Prevention) department of the Hérault Valley community of communes, who are currently carrying out a diagnosis of all the tributaries of the river located within the community's territory.

The aim of this operation? To identify all the sensitive points likely to cause flooding, with a view to major works campaigns that will begin in 2026 and continue until 2031. “We are defining the major challenges ahead,” explains Arnaud Bouhours, Gemapi technician at the inter-municipality. We are particularly attentive to bridges where accumulations of dead wood are likely to form, subsequently causing flooding on the roads." 

The problem of invasive plants

This diagnosis will also be an opportunity to take stock of the situation of invasive species in the waterways of the Hérault valley. More than twenty plants of this type have been identified in the area, disrupting the balance of biodiversity. “Originally from other continents, these plants were introduced by man, like the boxelder maple,” explains Arnaud Bouhours. This species was very fashionable on public lands in the 1990s, but it has since spread widely in the surrounding nature!" 

Nevertheless, the services of the community of communes have decided to concentrate primarily on Japanese knotweed, a plant with rapid growth, which quickly forms very dense clumps. "This species is very present upstream of the Hérault gorges, towards Ganges or Le Vigan, adds the technician. In the event of heavy flooding, rhizomes flow and spread across our territory! Our goal is to limit its proliferation as much as possible."

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