Bièvre River

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Bièvre
Origin	Île-de-France
Mouth	Seine
Basin countries	France
Length	25 km
Avg. discharge	0.2 m³/s
Basin area	201 km²

The Bièvre is a 25.4 km long river of the Île-de-France région that flows into the Seine (left bank) in Paris. The name translates to "Beaver River" in English.

The current course is said to have been modified from its natural course to supply irrigation for an abbey located outside the city wall of Phillipe-Auguste. This diversion is reflected in maps of Paris dating from the 13th century. Historically the river was heavily industrialized with mills, and supported numerous tanneries and dye-makers. This led to serious pollution concerns that persist up to the present time. The river is nowadays buried in tunnels for its whole course within Paris; as of 2004, the city of Paris is considering uncovering some sections of the Bièvre.

The source of the Bièvre is in Guyancourt, département Yvelines. From there, it flows through the following départements and towns:

• Yvelines: Jouy-en-Josas
• Essonne: Bièvres, Massy
• Hauts-de-Seine: Antony
• Val de Marne: L'Haÿ-les-Roses, Gentilly

The river enters the present day city of Paris near Stade Charléty (close to the border between the XIIIe and XIVe arrondissements), and reaches the Seine River in the Latin Quarter (Ve arrondissement) close to Île de la Cité.

[edit] External links

• Pictures: [1], [2], [3]