The shortage of water in French vineyards requires urgent action if we are to avoid the worst-case scenario. The situation is critical. We are issuing a wake-up call.

Opinon by Eliane and Jean-Marc Lafage, owners of Domaine LAFAGE in Roussillon

The problem facing French agriculture today is severe. Its very existence, its survival, is at stake. Over the next few years, decisions will have to be made about who should have first rights to water. There is no time to wait. Action needs to be taken quickly because the future of our wine estates is in greater danger than ever before. Will our family estate in Roussillon still exist in 20 years’ time if the current lack of water that we are experiencing persists?

This Monday, February 27, we have just come back from the vineyard. We trod this earth that feeds us. The situation is alarming, catastrophic. Many of our winemaker friends all over France are asking themselves the same question: what are we going to do? 

Last year we were lucky; in March and April 225 mm of rain fell on our vines. These spring showers were our saving grace and saw us through until harvest. Despite the five or six heatwaves that hit us, we saw that when the plants had even just a small amount of water, they did manage to grow. 

But today the situation is even more worrying; over the last 10 months, 79% less rain has been recorded than normal. While between 350 and 400 mm of rain should have fallen between October 2022 and February 2023, the reality is a disaster for our vines. They received just 75 mm. We have installed seven weather stations in our various terroirs where we also measure soil hygrometry. The numbers are striking: this February we have the same level of humidity in our soil as during what is usually the most difficult period for us, i.e. around mid-August. This meteorological situation makes us fear what may happen in the coming months. We must be prepared for May - a period that is crucial for vines to grow properly - to be extremely difficult. It’s not just our own terroirs; the situation across the whole of Roussillon is alarming. No snow has fallen on our mountains and the reservoirs have dried up, resulting in a drop in the water table and a reduction in the production of hydroelectricity. And with authorities already talking of restrictions from March, just imagine how complicated the situation will be during the scorching months of July and August. This is when demand for water is at its peak as summer visitors flock to the Mediterranean.

Sadly, this worrying situation is nothing new. In 2016 we suffered a huge drought with yields that were down a third on normal years. This wake-up call was what motivated our first initiatives and the establishment of the “Regenerative Viticulture” program. We began this anti-drought plan by experimenting with vines planted at altitude - the temperatures are cooler there, and the plants suffer less evapotranspiration than in the plain. In our region this change in climate also means the inevitable demise of the historic dry hillside vineyards that produce natural sweet wines (an age-old tradition in Roussillon). These vines are slowly declining, and are doomed to disappear altogether. We need to look elsewhere for plots that are more fertile, where there is more easily accessible water nearby. Is irrigation the solution? 

Since 2016 we have constantly been adapting our practices at Domaine Lafage. Our research and development unit, in collaboration with the University of Montpellier and a panel of viticultural specialists, has been working daily on maximizing our efficient use of water. If water resources are restricted and limited, what can we do to be more efficient, and use less? In the coming years, every drop that falls on our vines and our soil must be used to maximum effect. Our research has already shown that 30 mm of water can be just as effective as 100 mm if it is used at the right moment and if we adopt different practices in our vineyards. It is cause for hope, but our efforts today are also a source of uncertainty and anxiety about the future. 

We cannot, however, give up the fight. Solutions to this shortage of water do exist. The consortium formed between our own teams and the scientific world has led us to reconsider our relationship with the soil. We must improve its overall fertility to maximize the efficient use and allocation of water resources in our ecosystems. This essential paradigm shift involves using more, and new, types of organic fertilizer than we did in the past. Biochar (a kind of active charcoal of natural origin) is proving to be a valuable ally in this transition, with its ability to enhance both water penetration and retention. It is an example of how we can “cultivate” water using this innovative medium. Let us hope that these new methods that are beginning to prove their effectiveness will become enduring solutions for our Mediterranean vineyards. 

But they must also be accompanied by a general reflection on the sharing of water resources: between decision-makers and end users. For example, why not authorize agriculture to have greater access to water during periods of low demand (at the end of winter) in order to replenish groundwater reserves and improve fertility? This would sustain the soils during the dry season (spring/summer) without risk to the harvest, whilst ensuring sufficient water resources for the summer populations. The solutions are there, within our reach. We cannot just give up, or even imagine that it is too late to take major decisions.

Let’s be inspired by Nature, not bowed by it! “Wine is sunlight held together by water,” as Galileo said. It’s time to cultivate water like we cultivate vines, to enable us to carry on working without worry. The future of our family estate and all the winegrowing estates of the Mediterranean depends on it. There is no life without water, but we can survive with less water.

Domaine Lafage already works with some of the greatest wine estates in the world, such as Familia Torres (Spain) and Jackson Family Wines (USA), to share best practices in regenerative agriculture through the collaborative working group “International Wineries for Climate Action”. We can see clearly that there are paths open to us to adapt our vines to climate change, but we must act rapidly to avoid the potential disaster looming before us. We must stand together to face the greatest challenge of our times.