You’ve probably seen way too many pictures of Paris on your Instagram this summer – but be prepared to see a whole lot more, as the city of lights turns itself into the world’s most beautiful Olympic venue for the games next summer. Now, some swimming events will be held in the Seine river, passing in front of the Eiffel tower, Notre Dame, and several other landmarks. But how are organizers making that green water safe enough to swim in? International NewsNet Correspondent Ryan Thomspon tells us from Paris…
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00:00 With less than a year to go until the world's top athletes descend on Paris,
00:05 the French capital is pulling out all the stops.
00:08 Place de la Concorde, Le Grand Palais, Les Invalides,
00:11 iconic place of Paris, we will welcome official competition.
00:16 That also includes turning the iconic River Seine into a competition swimming pool.
00:22 We get out of the stadium for the opening ceremony,
00:25 for the first time for the Olympics and for the Paralympics,
00:28 we will use the River Seine for it.
00:31 So that's maybe the best way you can discover Paris.
00:35 The Seine River cuts right through the heart of modern Paris
00:39 and had a role in how much of this modern city grew up around it.
00:43 Before the 20th century, it was not uncommon to see people bathing in the water here,
00:48 but the construction of industry and development of factories upstream
00:51 quickly put that to a halt.
00:55 Up until recently, pollution levels were dangerously high.
00:59 Scientists detecting not just industrial chemicals,
01:03 but also dirty runoff and even fecal matter.
01:06 Brushing teeth, washing clothes, dishes, all these activities produce chemicals.
01:13 That's one source of contamination.
01:15 But we also have the wastewater intake from our homes, toilets, bathrooms, etc.
01:20 And these products may contain microbes that are dangerous.
01:23 So far, wastewater treatment plants have significantly cleaned up the river
01:30 over the last 20 years, but actually swimming in the water presents a new set of risks.
01:36 What kind of measurements are you getting?
01:38 Is the Seine going to be ready for people to swim in it
01:41 by the time these Olympic Games come to town?
01:43 We're almost certain that we will be able to swim in the Seine,
01:48 but rainwater will be the next big challenge.
01:51 When it rains, we have rainwater runoff on the streets.
01:54 It's not very clean, so we must try to limit this as much as possible.
01:59 Organizers had planned a test swimming event as we film this story.
02:03 But days of rainy weather and dirty runoff meant those plans had to be scrapped.
02:09 And even after the Games, Paris hopes that swimming in the Seine becomes a summer tradition.
02:15 Millions of dollars are being spent on programs like this
02:19 that teach underprivileged students how to handle the water.
02:22 Water in more general issues is definitely a priority,
02:26 so we're happy that thanks to the dynamic of the Games,
02:30 there will be a new Seine with a better quality of water
02:34 definitely after the Games, thanks to the Games.
02:37 But though young swimmers like Imran say he'd swim in the Seine,
02:41 his real dream is the ocean.
02:44 In Paris, I'm Ryan Thompson for Newsnet.
02:47 News Net.
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