lAdour

lAdour, or l’Adour in French, is a river in southwestern France and the principal watercourse of the Adour-Garonne basin, which drains to the Atlantic Ocean. The river is roughly 308 kilometers long and is a major geographic feature of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region.

It originates in the Pyrenees and flows in a generally northwesterly direction, passing through parts of the Hautes-Pyrénées, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, and Landes departments. Along its course it runs by or near towns such as Aire-sur-l’Adour, Mont-de-Marsan, and Dax before reaching the coast. The Adour empties into the Atlantic through a broad estuary near Bayonne on the Bay of Biscay.

Hydrology and land use: The Adour basin supports agriculture, forestry, and rural communities, with irrigation networks and water supply infrastructure that serve a large agricultural area in the Landes region. The river’s estuary and surrounding wetlands provide habitat for wetland birds and other wildlife and are subject to conservation and flood-control measures.

Management and history: The Adour-Garonne Water Agency oversees water resources within the basin as part of a national river-basin management plan. The river has long shaped settlement, transport, and economy in the region, and flood control has been a priority to protect towns and agricultural lands along its valley.