Évian Watershed PES — APIEME Agricultural Conservation Scheme (France)

The Évian Watershed PES scheme dates to the late 1980s, when the Évian Mineral Water Company (now part of Danone) recognised that protecting the purity of its spring on the Plateau de Gavot in Haute-Savoie required working with the 41 farmers whose land overlies the 35 km² catchment. French mineral water labelling law mandates strict nitrate and microbiological purity standards that agricultural run-off threatened.

To protect the nitrate and microbiological purity of the Évian spring by changing upstream agricultural practices, using financial incentives rather than land acquisition — unlike the contemporaneous Vittel/Agrivair scheme — in order to preserve farmer autonomy.

The scheme is formalised through APIEME (Association pour la Protection de l'Environnement et de l'Espace de la Mer et de l'Évian), which contracts directly with farmers on restricting synthetic fertilisers, managing manure storage and applying buffer zones. The Danone Ecosystem Fund co-financed the Terragr'Eau project (launched 2016), a cooperative biodigester processing manure from all 41 participating farms.

Terragr'Eau produces nearly 1 million m³ of biomethane per year, injected into the local gas network, eliminating the primary nitrate contamination pathway and generating a renewable energy stream for the local community. Nitrate levels in Évian mineral water have remained well below 3 mg/L throughout the programme, against a French regulatory limit of 50 mg/L, over more than 35 years.

The UNECE cites the Évian scheme as a benchmark for voluntary corporate-farmer PES in the food and beverage sector.