in Toulouse, like everywhere in France, it’s over
The measure has been reported several times due to the health crisis. The decree has just been published: heating and air conditioning are now prohibited on open terraces from this Thursday, March 31, 2022.
The decree was published on Wednesday March 30. From now on, heaters will be prohibited on open terraces. Only covered terraces closed by walls could still use this type of heating, considered to be very energy-intensive.
The measure has been postponed several times because of the Covid-19, so as not to add additional constraints to the terraces of cafes and restaurants already hard hit by the health crisis.
It’s here Citizen’s Convention for the Climate which had recommended “a ban on heating outdoor public spaces”. The Government had taken up this proposal in the bill against climate change.
During the vote on the Climate Law, definitively adopted by Parliament on July 20, 2021, Emmanuelle Wargon, Minister Delegate to the Minister for Ecological Transition, exclaimed that the ” heated terrace is absolute nonsense“.
For his part, Mickaël Nogal, former LREM deputy for Haute-Garonne, had had some criticism, stating that it would be enough to equip yourself with a plaid to drink coffee outside in winter.
Whether with gas burners or electric radiant heaters, many scientists have attempted to estimate the CO2 emissions of these heaters when used outdoors. Heating a 15 m² terrace for 8 hours would be equivalent to driving 350 kilometers.
The energy specialist Thierry Salomon, vice-president of the négawatt association, and based in Occitania, has also embarked on the calculations.
No longer heating his terrace is necessarily a blow for a cafe owner or a restaurateur. But in Toulouse, only 10% of catering establishments use outdoor heating. In Paris, it’s 60%.
This new constraint is nevertheless a blow for the managers of bars and restaurants already hard hit by the health crisis.
Energy-consuming heating or air-conditioning systems will be authorized on public property only in covered, airtight places closed by rigid side walls.