Perhaps now, with nationwide secheresse of one sort or another, perhaps they’ll sort it out and send the excess water to where it can do most good. 
‘Years ago there was a scheme to provide a network of rivers and canals from the wet west to the dry east 9f England.’
In the 1880s a valley and village in the Eastern Lake District was drowned in order to create a reservoir for Manchester., over 150kms to the south. The water first emerged in the ornate fountain in Albert Sqr, opposite the Town HallI. This was an amazing hydro-engineering feat but it was also very controversial. See:-
There’s a very detailed book on the subject, Harriet Ritvo’s Dawning of the Green, https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/D/bo5764147.html
My sole criticism of the book (I was asked to review it) was that Ritvo argued this was the start of the environmental movement because people who had never been to Thirlemere wrote letters to The Times protesting about the flooding of the valley. By contrast I’d argue that it started earlier with the creation of national parks in the US such as Yellowstone, about fifteen years before.
We’ve had quite a bit of rain in the last 4 to 5 days, I’d say about 8cm or so looking at some pots I left outside for the purpose. It’s due to continue for another 2 to 3 days but at much lower levels. Not sure even this much rain will help to fill our reservoirs here.
Well it rained most of yesterday but you would never know it. Barely wetted the ground but hopefully it could stave off fires breaking out by being damp. No more forecast this week again.
A few weeks ago I joked that the place we are staying - just outside Figeac, Lot had a beautiful landscape rather like the best of 
Wales with sunshine.
And here’s my weather forecast for the next couple of weeks, I’d love to send rain some down South and in exchange have a couple of degrees more heat so I can plant my pepper plants out.
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Michael, yes it’s been wet, but our gardens love the novelty and of course Figeac’s in France, not Wales !
Here, our summer is guaranteed and it will be good, as always.
Although I suppose one can, I can’t imagine why I’d be sipping a chilled Côte de Provence rosé on a Welsh hillside, and even if it’s doable, a decent one will cost a lot more than €7 or €8…
And of course that’s before we even get on to gastronomic comparisons!
Nevertheless, hope the remainder of your visit goes well.
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And the role of the ladies in black and white bikinis., it’s not entirely clear how they assist you…?
I’ve lost no enthusiasm for living here - just the opposite, but my plans to do some canoeing on the Célé may need to go on hold. Will try a walk around Ste Circ-Lapopie tomorrow (weather permitting).
We noticed how cold it was a couple of weeks back, and how some plants seemed behind the UK, even though it hit 23 on our last day. I suspect this year is going to be a real mixed bag of weather, but if there’s more rain and less sun it may help the drought a little.
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Had a very pleasant visit there last year, late summer… weather was glorious…
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Should have written Saint Cirq-Lapopie. Yes beautifully located high above the River Lot
They must be the weather forecasters
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Hard to believe that! Here in the UK in southern England I’ve noticed that our prevailing wind this year has been north, north-east, rather than west. We did have a westerly yesterday and got 21 but the wind has turned again and at close to 11 am it’s just over 12. I’ve heard it said that winter and spring temperatures will not vary very much - winters mild and springs chilly.
It may be a local issue, Cussy being at 500 meters and surrounded with hills. We’ve noticed how very similar temps are to Oxfordshire.
This is an extremely good idea for new builds - and very effective where the climate is suitable. My brother built two houses in the Turks & Caicos Islands 20 years ago - he lived in one and I lived in the other - and beneath the main house was a huge water tank fed by rainwater collected from the roofs of both houses.
We were not connected to mains water at all, rainwater supplied all our needs the vast majority of the time, and it was only if we had a sustained drought that we had to buy in a tanker of water.
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Our local town created a lotissment that was destined to be only for passive houses. One got built, and very nice it is too. Then they had to abandon the principal and allow any house. And very horrid they are too.
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IIRC @Wozza lives on top of the communal cistern for Vezelay.
That happened on the old camp site in my last village. Only a few eco type houses were built over about 7 years leaving several lots vacant and overgrowing so the commune did a deal with a housing association to build five social homes (eco style) in return for financial assistance in other projects. It worked and they are all full and since, two of the other vacant lots have been bought and built on. However, building sites are slowing down at the moment due to the unforseen increasing costs of materials which in many cases, the clients having their new homes built just cannot afford to pay for and they get left in limbo and the builders pull out cutting their losses now.
[quote=“Ancient_Mariner, post:119, topic:34244, full:true”]
IIRC @Wozza lives on top of the communal cistern for Vezelay.
[/quote] ji
Yes I do, and next year I’ll be using the water for the toilets and washing machine.
The construction of the Basilica started at the end of the 9th century, being on a hill with no natural springs, water was a problem. When building the (now) Basilica and houses a citerne under ground tunnels was also built, water coming from the roofs.
This practice went on until the late 18 hundreds when Vézelay was finally supplied with water from a neighboring village 2km away.
Many of the houses here even have lavoirs in the cellars.
Salt was not a problem though
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