Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2024 Paris: Preocupações com a qualidade da água no Rio Seine

O Rio Seine é ♠ um ponto de referência Paris, tanto para os parisienses quanto para os turistas. Nas Olimpíadas de Verão de 2024, ♠ o rio será o centro das atenções, sediando eventos como o triatlo e a cerimônia de abertura, que, pela primeira ♠ vez na história dos Jogos Olímpicos, não acontecerá um estádio.

A partir do Pont Alexandre III Bridge, as corridas individuais ♠ de triatlo começarão com uma natação de 1,5 quilômetro, seguida por uma corrida de 40K de bicicleta – passando pelo ♠ Le Grand Palais e Champs-Elysées – e terminando com uma corrida de 10K pelo coração da cidade.

Uma equipe mista de ♠ revezamento, composta por quatro atletas (dois homens e duas mulheres), também começará no Pont Alexandre III Bridge, com cada atleta ♠ completando uma natação de 300 metros, seguida por uma corrida de 5,8K de bicicleta e 1,8K de corrida.

Se tudo correr ♠ bem, será um momento histórico, já que nadar no Seine tem sido ilegal por mais de 100 anos, devido aos ♠ níveis de poluição da água. No entanto, alguns advertem que ainda existem perigos potenciais abaixo da superfície do rio.

Recentemente, testes ♠ compartilhados com a tecnologia da Fluidion mostraram que o Seine ainda não é seguro para nadar, de acordo com os ♠ padrões estabelecidos pelo World Triathlon, devido a níveis elevados de bactérias E. Coli na água, potencialmente expostos a riscos graves ♠ à saúde.

As autoridades gastaram pelo menos €1.4 bilhão (R$1.55 bilhão) para limpar o rio. No mês passado, uma instalação de ♠ armazenamento de chuva foi aberta que pode armazenar 20 piscinas olímpicas de água para reduzir a pressão sobre a rede ♠ de esgoto e reduzir o risco de água residual ser descarregada no Seine, de acordo com um comunicado da Paris ♠ 2024.

Enquanto isso, times de triatlo de todo o mundo estão se preparando para o pior e esperando o melhor.

Preocupações com ♠ a qualidade da água

"Para mim, será muito frustrante e muito vergonhoso para a França, Paris e os Jogos Olímpicos se ♠ não pudermos fazer um triatlo", disse a triatleta francesa Jeanne Lehair uma entrevista telefônica.

A cidade de Paris está monitorando ♠ o local olímpico do Seine com seu próprio laboratório, mas a empresa Fluidion, fundada Paris 2012, também está ♠ verificando a qualidade da água do rio várias vezes por semana no Pont Alexandre III Bridge.

Os testes da Fluidion mostraram ♠ que, média, os níveis de E. Coli no Seine entre início de abril e final de maio foram de ♠ cerca de 3400 MPN/100mL. De acordo com os cálculos da , isso é mais de três vezes o ♠ nível necessário para "bom" qualidade da água, de acordo com os padrões do World Triathlon.

"Tivemos um tempo muito chuvoso nos ♠ últimos meses, causando muitos despejos combinados de esgoto Paris e rio acima", disse Dan Angelescu, CEO da Fluidion, ♠ 31 de maio via e-mail. "O impacto na qualidade da água é evidente, com picos bacterianos notáveis seguindo eventos de ♠ chuva."

Nearly all of France has seen 120 to 200% of normal rainfall over the past three months, with numerous episodes ♠ of flooding across the country, especially the north, according to Météo France.

The highest E. Coli levels recorded by Fluidion were ♠ 23590 MPN/100mL on May 2 and 13090 MPN/100mL on May 30, according to Angelescu. The May 2 result is more ♠ than 20 times higher than World Triathlon's "good quality" level, according to 's calculation.

More recently, following several days ♠ of dry and sunny weather, E. Coli levels on Monday 6 June were 2280 MPN/100mL, according to Angelescu, better than ♠ previous results but still above acceptable levels for swimming.

If E. Coli levels remain this high, the swimming leg of the ♠ triathlon will have to be cancelled, according to World Triathlon competition rules, unless the organization's medical committee decides that the ♠ race can go ahead.

E. Coli is not typically pathogenic itself, but it can indicate the presence of other pathogens, which ♠ can cause skin rashes, diarrhea, serious gastrointestinal diseases and, in very rare cases, even death.

However, Angelescu said that the water ♠ quality of the Seine is likely to improve significantly before July due to drier and sunnier summer conditions, which will ♠ reduce the frequency of sewage spills.

"It is highly speculative and scientifically unsound to project any conclusions about water quality during ♠ the Games based on recent trends," he said.

Angelescu said that "significant infrastructure projects" by the city of Paris designed to ♠ improve water quality will have a "substantial" impact.

"These tanks are expected to become operational before the Games, potentially becoming a ♠ ... Games changer," added Angelescu.

"When our instruments and data indicate that the water quality is good, we will be the ♠ first to dive in, headfirst!"

Angelescu's tone of optimism isn't universally shared.

French charity Surfrider Foundation Europe warned in April that they ♠ were "genuinely concerned about the health of athletes" after only one of the 14 samples collected by the organization indicated ♠ a satisfactory standard of water quality for swimming.

Two months later, the charity toldthat they have since taken five additional samples, ♠ with E. coli levels remaining "systematically above the guide values."

Paris 2024 said they still have "great confidence" in the city ♠ of Paris to improve water quality to the "necessary standard" in time for the Games.

"Generally, water quality in the Seine ♠ continues to improve every day," they said in a statement toin early June. "By the time of the Games, bacteriological ♠ pollution in the Seine will have been reduced by 75% thanks to the range of actions undertaken by our partners."

In ♠ a statement to , the city of Paris said that recent grey and rainy conditions have had a ♠ "major impact" on the Seine's water quality. A lack of sunlight – which would normally help to kill bacteria – ♠ has also contributed to the poor quality, they said earlier this month.

They added: "It is only when summer conditions (strong ♠ sunshine, high temperatures, prolonged absence of rain) become established that the Seine will gradually return to its 'summer' appearance, and ♠ that we will see a gradual and significant improvement in water quality."

Following multiple days of sunny weather in the first ♠ week of June, E. Coli levels improved near Pont Alexandre III Bridge, according to official data from the city of ♠ Paris shared with , but whether the good weather will last remains to be seen.

No precipitation trend, higher ♠ or lower than average, has been predicted for areas around Paris for the summer.

Since June 1, E. Coli levels declined ♠ from around 7000 UFC/100mL (equivalent units to MPN/100mL, according to World Triathlon) to just below 1000 UFC/100mL on June 9, ♠ according to official data.

However, World Triathlon's Competition Rules 2024 say that these levels are still too high for swimming, unless ♠ the organization's medical committee decides that the race can go ahead.