Large Salagou-Mourèze site: raising awareness of risks to prevent fires

A droite, l'animatrice aussure la pr̩vention pour l'association Demain la terre. JM РJM

“Let's protect our forests”, a stand to raise awareness among the population about local issues and a certain culture of fire risk.

This Tuesday, at the very time when the red flag was being raised on Clermont beach, due to the risk of toxicity from cyanobacteria in Salagou, Manon Lasternas highlighted a completely different risk, also linked to the mercury that is inexorably climbing in the thermometer: that of fire risk. A nature facilitator at the association Demain la terre*, the Hérault native had set up her stand a few meters from the Clermont pontoon, as close as possible to the site's visitors. Holidaymakers who are not always familiar with the vegetation and climate of the South of France.

High stakes on the Grand site

"We offer workshops designed to raise awareness and ensure prevention of fire risks, both for children and their parents." In a fun way, " we show children that each plant can have an adaptation to the climate. Some, for example, have very small leaves to avoid sweating too much, other plants emit odors… For adults, the host gets more into the heart of the matter: “We're going to talk about the fire triangle, how a fire starts. And the potential risks that are present around us. We are in a place that presents strong biodiversity, tourism, human and security issues. We need to understand how to perceive the risks and, above all, how to avoid them. On our scale, we can avoid many fires starting.”

Smoking banned in Salagou

How then to avoid the risks ? “Normally all fires are banned. We often talk about barbecues or campfires, which are completely forbidden, but normally, smoking is included in this ban."The frequent presence of cigarette butts on the banks of the lake demonstrates, however, that this golden rule is far from being scrupulously respected. It is impossible to post a firefighter or a policeman behind each smoker, but “we must at least ensure that people have a pocket ashtray, that they smoke in well-maintained areas, especially not in a forest.” With extreme temperatures and dry vegetation, wind is obviously one of the factors that aggravate the risk. Forest firefighters, police officers, mountain bike and horse patrollers, fishing federation, ASVP…” There is a major mobilization of services to ensure prevention and awareness." And the devil is sometimes in the detail. As for prohibitions, "it's the same for parking. You don't park outside authorized sites. An exhaust pipe on tall grass can easily cause a fire".

In partnership with the City of Clermont and the Pavillon bleu. I subscribe to read the rest