On this June day, Fabrice Clément, laboratory technician, and his colleagues from the analysis laboratory of the Var department, located in Draguignan, are busy. “We have to analyze many samples today”, he explains. In this case water.
This was collected on the seaside, in Port Fréjus, the same morning. “I sterilize my tools using a flamer and I will position a paper membrane which will be used to filter the water”he explains. “Then we place it in a Petri dish equipped with a reagent that looks for specific bacteria such as staphylococcus or evenEscherichia coli.”
Mandated by the Regional Health Agency
Well numbered, for traceability, the boxes then go to the fridge for 48 hours, before being analysed. “If the concentration of these bacteria is higher than the limit set by the Regional Health Agency (ARS), we declare the bathing water non-compliant”says Philippe Gagnaire, head of the sampling team. “In this case, the ARS, which awarded us the contract for bathing water samples, orders the closure of the site and we immediately take new samples to confirm the initial results.”
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This was particularly the case for Muie, the “natural swimming pool” of Salernes, closed at the beginning of August 2021 as a result of these tests carried out by the laboratory workers. “If swimming is not possible, it is clearly for the sake of health for the people of Var and the tourists who take advantage of these sites”he adds.
Thirteen seasonal workers as reinforcements for the summer
This Monday in June, the teams were deployed early in the morning on board a mobile laboratory in Port Fréjus to take samples. “They must be analyzed no later than two hours later, so that they are not damaged”says Arthur Moussiegt, one of the thirteen seasonal samplers recruited as reinforcements for the season from May to September.
Bathing shoes and swimsuit on him, he must take a dozen seawater samples this morning and bring them back to the truck. “I have to go fill my sterile bottle about 30 centimeters below the surface and at a depth of one meter”he details the procedure by disinfecting his hands with his bottle of hydroalcoholic gel.
Before that, the young man walked to the collection point using a phone and GPS landmarks. In water, it also measures the temperature. Once his measurements have been taken and the bottles filled, he must still note his observations: “to know if the water is clear or muddy and if there are objects floating on the surface such as wood or plastic.”
The water must then be brought back to the truck for the first tests to be carried out and the samples to be packaged. These samples take place everywhere in the Var, on the beaches and in the swimming pools of establishments that welcome the public.
45,000 samples analyzed per year
Created in 1960 by the Department of Var, the laboratory analyzes more than 45,000 samples per year. In 2021, 50,490 samples were processed by laboratory technicians.
“The departmental analysis laboratory is not only in charge of water sampling and analysis”says Christophe Barnabot, director of territorial engineering for the Var department, to which the structure is attached.
“We also provide veterinary analyzes within the herds to prevent the appearance of diseases that could be transmitted between animals or to humans.”
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The structure also has the mission of carrying out health checks within catering establishments in the buildings and structures of the department, in particular colleges. “Each year, 4 million meals are served to 33,000 half-boarders”recalls Christophe Barnabot.
“To do this, we carry out five sampling campaigns per year in each college: on food, but also utensils and work surfaces. If the results are non-compliant, we meet the teams to identify the origin of the problem and support them so that it does not happen again.” The only limitation of the laboratory is the obligation to subcontract chemical analyses, which require very expensive equipment.
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Bathing water analyzed, but not only…
“The departmental analysis laboratory is not only in charge of water sampling and analysis”says Christophe Barnabot, director of the laboratory. “We also provide veterinary analyzes within the livestock of the Var to ensure in case of suspicion of disease.”
The Dracénoise structure also has the mission of carrying out health checks within catering establishments in the buildings and structures of the department. Especially colleges. “Each year, 4 million meals are served to 33,000 half-boarders“, recalls Christophe Barnabot of the challenge of health control that this represents. “For this we carry out five campaigns a year using five samples taken from food but also utensils and work surfaces”he explains.
“If the results are non-compliant, we meet the teams to identify the origin of the problem and support them so that it does not happen again.“The only limitation of the laboratory is the obligation to subcontract the chemical analyses, which require very expensive equipment.
At the height of the health crisis linked to the Covid epidemic, the laboratory also participated in the war effort. “We had mastered the PCR technique for years, which we used on animals“, says Christophe Barnabot. “We therefore analyzed a lot of tests during the epidemic and served as confirmation of the tests carried out by the Dracénie Hospital Center (CHD) in Draguignan.
Created in 1960 by the Department of Var, the laboratory analyzes more than 45,000 samples per year. In 2021, 50,490 direct debits were processed. by the laboratory workers.
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