French water charities on Monday sounded the alarm over pollution of the Seine, which is used for swimming during the Olympics.
The Surfrider Foundation said it analyzed six months of laboratory tests and concluded that the river's water remains contaminated and potentially dangerous.
In an open letter, the Biarritz-based charity said: “We are concerned about the growing concerns not only about the water quality of the Seine, but also about the risks faced by athletes traveling through contaminated water. I want to share it with others.”
Paris authorities are racing against time to clean up the Seine before the Olympics open on July 26, with the famous waterway set to play a starring role during the Games.
It will be used as the venue for the opening ceremony and then for marathon swimming competitions and triathlons, as long as contamination permits.
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Some 1.4 billion euros ($1.5 billion) have been spent over the past decade on upgrading sewage and stormwater treatment facilities in the Paris region, with the aim of improving water quality in the Seine and its main tributary, the Marne.
A major new stormwater facility is expected to be completed later this month, while construction continues on new sewer connections for river boats.
Surfrider said the tests were carried out by the Hauts de Paris Institute and the environmental analysis group Analycor under the Pont Alexandre III and the Pont de l'Alma, where Olympic competitions will be held from September to March.
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European water quality standards and the International Triathlon and Open Water Swimming Federation set limits on the concentration of two bacteria (E. coli and enterococci) that are indicators of the presence of faeces.
Surfrider said its measurements showed levels twice and in some cases three times higher than the maximum allowable amount.
The main source of hope for Olympic organizers and Paris authorities is that these levels were recorded during the winter, one of the wettest winters in 30 years.
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Heavy rains have been known to puncture Paris' sewage systems, releasing untreated wastewater directly into the river.
Organizers have always maintained that Olympic competitions can only be held on rivers if the weather is dry or there is little rainfall.
The cleaning of the Seine is intended to be one of the key legacy achievements of the Paris 2024 Olympics, with Mayor Anne Hidalgo pledging to build three public baths on the Seine next year.
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She and President Emmanuel Macron have pledged to swim in the Seine before the start of the Games to prove it is safe for athletes and the public.
Olympic open water swimming has often been hit by contamination concerns.
At the end of a 2019 test event ahead of the Tokyo Olympics, swimmers protested against the water quality in Tokyo Bay.
The possibility of swimming in contaminated Guanabara Bay was also discussed during the 2016 Rio Olympics.
