Overview
- City of Paris invested €1.4–1.6 billion in sewer upgrades, rainwater reservoirs and treatment plants to prepare the Seine for public swimming.
- Swim sites at the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame opened Saturday under lifeguard supervision but had to shut the next day when downpours caused the city’s 19th-century sewage system to overflow.
- Eastern Paris swim spots scheduled to open Sunday remained closed as water-quality tests detected elevated bacterial levels.
- Authorities conduct daily tests for E.coli and other bacteria and use a color-flag alert system to decide on closures or reopenings.
- The free, supervised swim program runs through the end of August and officials may expand the initiative to include sites on the Marne River if conditions improve.