La protection des captages et les intérêts agricoles (Restrictions à l'usage de l'eau)

The water catchment protection and the agriculture stakes

Avocat aux Conseils, Secrétaire général de l'AFDR, Professeur à l'Institut des Hautes Etudes de Droit Rural et d'Economie Agricole, IHEDREA

Abstract

Facing the pollution emitted by agricultural activities, the law attempts to intervening at the beginning in order to protect the drinking water resources by erecting "constraining judicial barriers", which are constituted by protective perimeters around the water catchments. Often considered as insufficient, these measures have to give way to more flexible and varied proceedings, transiting via a direct mediation of the landowner on the agricultural activities themselves.