⏱ 2 min read
Background
The Geneva basin shares its rivers with neighbouring France, including the Arve. In November 2023, an Arve flood affected both sides of the border. The Geneva Court of Audit and the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regional Audit Chamber (CRC-ARA) conducted a joint audit on flood and drought prevention.
The key points
Published on Tuesday 10 November 2026, the report concludes that cross-border cooperation remains limited. There is a Cross-Border Water Community (CTeau), but it is confined to informal exchanges. According to the CRC-ARA, it has neither solid powers nor resources of its own.
The report proposes four areas for improvement, all approved by the authorities. It recommends strengthening the role and resources of the CTeau. It also proposes a cross-border water observatory that would pool observation, map modelling and monitoring. Its form remains to be defined.
Calculation methods differ from one country to the other. The November 2023 Arve flood was thus classified as a 30-year flood on the French side and as historic, i.e. a 200-year flood, on the Geneva side.
Key figures
- 4 areas for improvement proposed, all approved by the authorities
- 30 years : return period of the 2023 Arve flood according to the French calculation
- 200 years : return period of the same flood according to the Geneva calculation
Who says what
- Nicolas Walder (Geneva State Councillor in charge of the Department of Territory): each entity will have to cede some power to a cross-border body
- Barbara Falk (President of the CRC-ARA): points out that natural phenomena ignore borders
- Martial Saddier (President of the Haute-Savoie Department): is concerned about funding, which will be hard to find in the current budgetary context
What's next
- Definition of the form and funding of thecross-border observatory for water, with no timetable announced
Further reading
Sources
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