Climate activists affiliated with Extinction Rebellion took action against several golf courses in the south of France, filling holes with cement in protest at exemptions to water restrictions during one of the worst droughts on record.

France has asked residents to avoid non-essential water use such as car washing and garden watering. However, activists complain that golf courses are still allowed to water the greens.

The protest action took place at the Vieille-Toulouse club and also at the Garonne des Sept Deniers field.

In defense of his exemption from the water restrictions, Gerard Rougier of the French Golf Federation told news website France Info: “A golf course without a green is like an ice rink without ice.”

Extinction Rebellion Toulouse posted a photo on Twitter (NYSE: TWTR ) apparently showing a golf hole filled with cement and a sign reading “This hole is drinking 277,000 litres. Do you drink that much? #Stop Golf.”

In a petition calling for the exemption enjoyed by French golf courses during the drought to be lifted, it is stated that “economic folly trumps ecological reason”.

Water bans are enforced at the discretion of regional officials and until now only Ille-et-Villaine in the west had banned irrigation of golf courses.

France has been one of the countries hardest hit by hot and dry conditions across Europe, with firefighters battling a “monstrous” blaze in the forests of south-west France.