Communication to France about the continued development of mega-basin projects

On May 18, 2023, the UN Special Procedures on the right to food, climate change, environment, freedom of assembly, human rights defenders and water and sanitation, issued a communication to France expressing their deep concern about the continued development of mega-basin projects in France, including especially for agricultural use. It considers that mega-basin projects may lead to violations of the right to environment and right to food due to difficulties for food production in regions that are heavily reliant on irrigation or with limited access to water resources. Such projects may have negative consequences by limiting livelihoods and productivity of small farmers who are already suffering economic difficulties linked to COVID-19, climate change and other constraints. Mega-basin projects would mostly benefit a few large-scale agricultural industries, rather than the vast majority of smaller farmers in France, and encourage monoculture farming that requires both vast amounts of water and chemicals. Such farming practices may also lead to the production of crops for exportation mostly, adding to overall environmental costs of food production. Faced with climate change and the increased frequency, intensity and duration of droughts, these types of farming practices and related mega-basin projects would not be sustainable in the long run. The communication points to the ‘short-term profitability of the mega-basins’. Climate change poses several additional challenges to the sustainability of mega-basins projects from a perspective of human rights, notably: the impact of climate change on overall water needs across France; the fact that storing water behind mega-dams could lead to severe evaporation of water resources; and, under pressure of heat and light the basins may be prone to formation of harmful algae and bacteria. There have been some studies conducted, but these did not detail the effects of climate change on the basis sufficiently. The UN Special Procedures share the concerns expressed by farmers, peasants and experts that mega-basins are at odds with sustainable agricultural systems, especially in light of climate change impacts: ‘living soils capable of filtering water would allow agriculture to face the climate crisis and increasing water scarcity’, and as such mega-basins are an ‘example of poor adaptation to climate change’. To guarantee the right to food, ‘funding related to water in agriculture must be massively redirected towards the support and development of practices allowing water to be retained in the soil (e.g. agroecological practices such as plant covers, hedges, permanent meadows, peasant seeds, grassy strips)’, conserving water resources and protecting water quality. The annex to the communication outlines the most important UN Charter-based and UN treaty-based provisions governing the right to food: Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), and further notes the relevance of the UN Framework Principles on Human Rights and Environment (2012) and Human Rights Council resolution 50/9 of 2022, which recognizes that climate change affects the realization of the right to food. The communication asks the government to provide more information ‘on existing mechanisms to involve French farmers and the organizations they represent in the consultation, mediation and decision-making process regarding mega-basin projects and ensure that their interests and concerns are taken into account’ The communication also pays considerable attention to facts and complaints related to the rights of environmental human rights defenders during peaceful protests and manifestations, and in terms of criminalisation and access to justice for people protesting against the basins. On September 15, 2023, France responded to the communication and the various requests for information. In its response, it mostly emphasizes the questions and issues related to the human rights defenders and protests, but also outlines in some detail which (legislative) frameworks and principles cover climate adaptation action in the agricultural sector, and how public participation may take place in this respect. The response does not include a substantive reaction on how public participation has occurred in response to the contested basins, or why the basins are pursued as part of France’s ‘range of solutions’ to effectively adapt to climate change as related to ‘agriculture and biodiversity’ or ensure ‘food sovereignty as a strategic issue for the nation’.