During the presentation of his water plan this Thursday in the Hautes-Alpes, Emmanuel Macron mentioned the generalization of the progressive pricing of the resource. What does this system, already in force in certain French cities such as Dunkirk, consist of? Europe 1 takes stock of this announcement, which however contains a blind spot.
This is one of Emmanuel Macron’s key announcements this Thursday: the generalization of the “progressive pricing” of water. The Head of State was traveling to Savines-le-Lac, in the Hautes-Alpes, to unveil his plan devoted to this precious resource. And this announcement is based on an observation that many French people share: it is very difficult to know precisely how much water you use on a daily basis. In reality, everyone knows what they have to pay for electricity or gas, but not for water. This is what would change with progressive pricing.
Concretely, everyone would have their meter and would therefore pay according to their consumption. “You have a price that increases per cubic meter according to consumption thresholds”, explains Alexandre Maillol, lecturer in economics at the University of Lorraine, at the microphone of Europe 1.
A system already in force in ten cities
The teacher explains: “For example, you have exceeded 75 m3. You are going to change the price for consumption between 75 m3 and the next block, what is called increasing block pricing”. To date, only about ten cities have opted for this progressive pricing, such as Dunkirk since 2012. In this northern town, beyond 200 m3 consumed, prices increase sharply. Result: water consumption in Dunkirk has been reduced by 10%.
However, experts warn of the blind spot in Emmanuel Macron’s announcement, who happen to be the professionals. Indeed, households represent only 20% of water consumption in France.
Source: Europe1
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