Extinction Rebellion protestors vandalise golf courses amid water ban

Protestors from the Extinction Rebellion group have claimed responsibility for a series of attacks on golf courses in the south of France.

As first reported by the BBC, the group says it was behind the pouring of cement into holes on the greens at a number of courses close to Toulouse.

The vandalism is understood to be a reaction to golf being granted an exemption from a water ban current in effect across much of the country.

A state of crisis has been declared across approximately two-thirds of France, with rainfall down by 85% for the time of year.

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Around 100 French villages are currently understood to be short of drinking water, with local residents currently banned from watering their gardens or washing their cars in the worst-hit areas.

Golf courses, however, have been allowed to continue watering, albeit at night and using no more than 30% than their usual quantities.

That caught the attention of Extinction Rebellion, with the local branch of the climate activists vandalising courses in the towns of Vieille-Toulouse and Blagnac. They have branded golf the “leisure industry of the most privileged”.

Gerard Rougier of the French Golf Federation condemned the attacks, insisting that “a golf course without a green is like an ice-rink without an ice”.

However, not everybody agrees.

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Eric Piolle, the Green Party mayor of Grenoble, has criticised the allowances being made for golf courses, saying that they “continue to protect the rich and powerful”.

Drought has also impacted golf courses in the UK.

Last week, England Golf distributed a missive last week, urging clubs in the worst-affected areas to “take immediate action” to mitigate the damage caused.

(Main pic: Extinction Rebellion Toulouse)