“Ardèche Inf’eau Plage” is the official website for information on bathing water quality in the rivers of the Ardèche basin.
Throughout the summer season, this is the place for information on:
– the locations of the 26 “public” beaches where bathing water quality is regularly checked (map and list);
– water quality analysis results, updated in real time;
– whether each beach is open or closed based on known risks or a temporary decline in water quality;
– whether a lifeguard is present and the facilities available at each site (parking, disabled access, supervision post, toilets etc.);
– information and advice about how to visit our rivers respectfully.
Bathing water quality:
Whether water is healthy for swimming depends on the quantity of two indicator bacteria present in the water: E. Coli and intestinal Enterococci.
Depending on the most recent analysis results, the ” Ardèche Inf’eau Plage ” website displays the water quality for each beach (thresholds and analysis methods are applied in accordance with European Directive 2006/7/EC):
– quality compliant = blue or green dot;
– quality non-compliant = red dot.
If the results are non-compliant, bathing is prohibited by the beach manager until the situation returns to normal (red/green triangle displayed). Beach closures may also be recommended in anticipation of a decline in quality (following a storm or an infrastructure failure).
The frequency with which information is updated on the “Ardèche Inf’eau Plage” site depends on two factors:
– depending on the beach, water quality assessments are carried out twice a week, once a week or every two weeks;
– the analysis method requires a minimum of 24 hours between the sample being taken from the river and the results being available (the bacteria have to multiply in the incubator before they can be counted).
If there are any differences between the water quality results displayed at the beach and on the ” Ardèche Inf’eau Plage ” website, you should trust the most recent information (all the analysis results are dated).
Bathing supervision:
Of the 26 beaches with regular water quality analyses, 10 sites are developed and supervised for swimmers (lifeguard, supervised bathing area, emergency post, emergency access).
This icon and a selection button on the home page of the ” Ardèche Inf’eau Plage ” website help you to identify these beaches.
You can find details of the days and times when a lifeguard is present on the beach info pages. This information is also displayed at each beach and at the town hall and is available from tourist offices.
Everywhere else, outside these supervised zones and times, you are free to swim but under your own responsibility and at your own risk.
If there are any differences between the information on the ” Ardèche Inf’eau Plage ” website and at the beach, check whether the lifeguard is actually present at the beach and see the information on the emergency post, including the flag colour.
If there are no flags at a beach, there is no supervision.
Respect for private property:
Some sites, although freely accessible and covered by analyses paid for by the local authority, are located on private land.
This information is presented on the info page for the beach where relevant. At these beaches, free bathing and access to the river are thus allowed thanks to the tolerance of the neighbouring landowners.
Please respect private property, the natural environment and the tranquillity of other users.
A collective project:
The “Ardèche Inf’eau Plage” tool is the result of collaborative work by multiple public bodies in the Ardèche river basin: the municipalities and municipal groupings that manage bathing, the regional health agency, the local water commission, the Ardèche tourism development agency and all the tourist offices in the Ardèche basin.
The Département de l’Ardèche provided financial support for the creation of the Ardèche Inf’eau Plage website.
Built with the ambition of strengthening the network and sharing information, it reflects a common desire for transparency among local authorities in southern Ardèche, Gard and Lozère with regard to river bathing. These authorities have been working for many years to offer a high-quality “public river service”: improving the safety and confidence of users while preserving our natural environments.
Creation and administration:
The “Ardèche Inf’eau Plage” tool was created and is administered every summer by the river association: Établissement Public Territorial du Bassin Versant de l’Ardèche.
Who are we ?
The Établissement Public Territorial du Bassin Versant de l’Ardèche (EPTB Ardèche) is the river association that manages the Ardèche, the Beaume, the Chassezac and their tributaries: the Lignon, the Fontaulière, the Bourges, the Volane, the Ligne, the Ibie, the Drobie, the Borne, the Altier… It was created through the merger between the ” Ardèche Claire “, Beaume Drobie and Chassezac river associations in 2018. Its members are 11 groupings of municipalities, and it manages aquatic habitats and prevents flood risks on their behalf.
Within its territory, it carries out water quality assessments, maintenance work on riverbanks and riverside vegetation, flood prevention, the promotion of water saving, activities to raise environmental awareness, particularly among school children etc.
Institutional website: www.ardeche-eau.fr
We hope you enjoy using “Ardèche Inf’eau Plage” and wish you a beautiful summer on our riverbanks!