Massive forest fires in France: Are driving bans now imminent?
Devastating forest fires are raging in southern France. Thousands of holidaymakers had to be evacuated from campsites. The flames are not only endangering the people in the region and causing enormous property damage, but are also contributing greatly to particulate pollution in the air. Is this why driving bans are now threatening?
In the Pyrénées-Orientales region, severe forest fires are currently causing problems for people and nature. With around 650 firefighters, 13 aeroplanes and 3 helicopters, the fire brigade in the south of France is currently in action to contain the fire. As is often the case at this time of year, the extreme drought and strong winds are fuelling the fire and carrying smoke for kilometres into the country.
This contributes heavily to air pollution. As there are also temporary environmental zones, so-called ZPAs, in the region, there is now a threat of driving bans. If the wind carries the smoke northwards, the "Montpellier/Herault ZPAd" zone on the southern Mediterranean coast, for example, could be activated. This covers the entire department of Hérault. Depending on the area and the degree of air pollution, the prefect decides where driving bans will be imposed and which vehicles will be affected. If a driving ban is imposed, vehicles without a French environmental sticker are always affected, as are often vehicles with a 5 or 4 sticker. If the air pollution is extremely high, other vehicles could also be banned.
It is clear that holidaymakers in the region should now pay more attention to potential driving bans.
Information on the bans can be found in the local media and in our free Green Zones app. This shows a map with the existing permanent and temporary zones and the respective entry status for your vehicle. If the prefect of a department issues an advance warning, i.e. an imminent driving ban, the respective zone appears in orange. If the driving ban actually comes into force, the zone is shown in red.
This way you are always up to date and can avoid fines and at the same time contribute to cleaner air in the areas that are already polluted by fires.