The Seine at Work Today

While the industrial barges have largely given way to tourist boats, the Seine remains a working river. The Port of Paris is still the second-largest river port in Europe, handling millions of tons of cargo each year—though now it's more likely to be recycled materials and construction debris than wine and wheat.

Captain Fatima Benali, one of the few female barge captains on the Seine, represents the river's modern face: "My grandfather came from Algeria to work in the Renault factories. He used to watch the barges from the factory windows and dream of being on the water. Now I captain a barge carrying recycled concrete. It's not romantic like the old wine barges, but it's honest work, and it's green—one barge takes 250 trucks off the roads."

The river also works as a climate regulator for the city, its waters cooling the urban heat island effect. New floating gardens and wetland restoration projects use the Seine's natural processes to clean the water and provide habitat for returning species like kingfishers and otters.