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Water in the Seine River had dangerously elevated levels of E. coli less than two months before the planned swimming events in it during the Paris Olympics, according to test results released yesterday.
Pollution levels in the first eight days of June, after prolonged heavy rains in Paris, showed that bacteria such as E. coli and enterococci exceeded the limits deemed safe for athletes.
The report was released by monitoring group Eau de Paris a day after a senior International Olympic Committee executive said there was “no reason to doubt” that the races would go ahead as scheduled at the historic stretch in the center of the Seine near the Eiffel Tower.
The first Olympic event on the cleaned Seine is the men’s triathlon, a 1.5km swim, on the morning of July 30.
The women’s triathlon is the following day and the medley relay is on August 5.
The women’s and men’s 10-kilometer swimming marathons are scheduled for August 8 and 9, respectively, in waters that have historically been polluted before the $1.5 billion pre-Olympics investment.
“We are confident that we will swim in the Seine this summer,” IOC official Christophe Duby said Thursday in an online briefing after hearing an update on Paris from city officials and Olympic organizers.
Despite the IOC’s publicly expressed confidence, the final decision to approve athlete-safe events must be made by the governing bodies of the individual sports, World Aquatics and World Triathlon.
The safety of the Seine’s water for the Olympics is in doubt as some test events planned for last August were cancelled, also after unseasonably heavy rains.
According to European standards, the safe limit for E. coli is 900 colony-forming units per 100 milliliters.
The World Triathlon Federation uses the same criteria to determine sufficient water quality for competition.
During the first eight days of June, test results showed E. coli levels frequently exceeded those thresholds. Enterococci levels were better, with most remaining within safe limits.
The tests show an improvement from high pollution levels on June 1 to more acceptable levels by June 9, mainly due to improving weather.
Rainwater seeps into the sewer system and to prevent street flooding, excess water carrying faecal bacteria is diverted into the Seine.
To address this, a massive reservoir capable of storing 50,000 cubic meters of water during heavy rainfall was unveiled in May.
Water quality in rivers in large cities can be affected by many things, from runoff to chemical dumping, sometimes illegally, and boat traffic.
Earlier this week, the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, doubled down on her pledge to take a dip in the river before the start of the race.
She confirmed on Tuesday that her swim has been postponed until after France’s snap election, which ends on July 7.
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