M2 - Water Resources (ER)

This course module draws on numerous concrete examples presented by environmental specialists and experts working in engineering firms, companies, public-private partnerships (EPICs), or research institutes in the water and environmental sector.                                                                            The course includes a field day dedicated to characterizing the physical properties of watercourses and aquifers, as well as various hydrometric measurement techniques. Specific sessions providing the necessary foundations for analyzing hydrological and hydrogeological data collected in situ will also be offered.

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This course unit includes a theoretical component designed to provide an understanding of transport processes and a more practical component that integrates fieldwork, numerical modeling, and the conduct of environmental studies. Quantitative hydrogeology is addressed through analytical and numerical solutions that account for transport processes in the subsurface.

This learning unit covers, among other things:

1) the mathematical tools and fundamental equations underlying analytical and numerical modeling;

2) the principles of numerical modeling (MDF); 

3) the typical methodology for creating a 3D numerical model for flow simulation; and

4) the analysis of scenarios incorporating climatic or anthropogenic forcings for optimal water resource management.

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This teaching unit focuses on the Vidourle Mediterranean watershed and the new experimental site of the Multiscale Observatory for Flood Dynamics and Subsurface Hydrodynamics in Karst Environments (MEDYCYSS – OSU OREME – SNO KARST). 

The first day in the field provides an introduction to the geographic, geological, and climatic context, as well as the various geomorphological features, the different orogenic phases, and their relationship to vegetation. A stop at the experimental site provides an opportunity to introduce the measurement devices (rain gauge, flux tower, probes measuring soil temperature and moisture, etc.) used, before addressing the issue of hydrological risk with the Conqueyrac flood control dam. A more theoretical segment will redefine the concepts of geomorphology and hydrogeomorphology and address soil-vegetation-atmosphere transfers.                            

The second day of fieldwork, centered on the experimental site located near the Pompignan plateau, is devoted to field measurements: soil infiltration tests to determine hydraulic conductivity at saturation, soil core sampling to determine porosity, moisture content, and bulk density, vegetation surveys, and flow rate measurements.   

The final section of the course is devoted to hydrological modeling, including an introduction to the HEC-HMS software through hands-on exercises, with the goal of estimating available water resources at the watershed scale (including evapotranspiration) and forecasting discharge rates during floods caused, in particular, by Cévennes-type weather events. Data collected in the field will be incorporated into this modeling work.

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These karst hydrosystems account for a significant proportion of the groundwater that supplies the population in France, as well as throughout the Mediterranean basin. They also play a major role in the so-called Cévennes-type floods (or those occurring in the Mediterranean basin), particularly in terms of their management. Another characteristic of these hydrosystems is the significant interaction between surface water and groundwater: whether in the form of localized active seepage in rivers, which directly feeds the associated karst aquifer, or major karst springs that give rise to streams or rivers.                                       This course unit will provide an overview of these hydrosystems, their functioning, and the methods used to study them. The topic of “Surface Water–Groundwater Interaction” will be a particular focus of this course unit, through the study of:

• Artificial Traces: Techniques, Methods of Creation (Theoretical and Practical), Methods of Analysis and Interpretation. Artificial Traces
• Signal processing and rainfall-runoff modeling, particularly of runoff from karst springs that feed streams and rivers.

These courses will consist of lectures as well as lab sessions involving the analysis of data from artificial tracer experiments and the processing of spring discharge signals. A full-day field trip will provide an opportunity to conduct various experiments on a karst hydrological system, specifically an artificial tracer experiment.

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The purpose of this unit is

1) to provide students with an overview of the value and power of isotopic and dating geochemical tools for understanding the functioning of hydrosystems and aquifers,

2) to help them understandthe context in which these tools can be applied 

3) to provide the knowledge necessary to understand and explore these techniques in greater depth.

This course unit is based on theoretical knowledge (lectures) and practical case studies (seminars/lab sessions).

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The EU course “Hydrological/Hydraulic Modeling and Flood Risks” examines the phenomena of flood genesis, flood propagation, and flooding. The module aims to enable students to acquire skills in hydrological and hydraulic modeling of these processes at the watershed and river scales:

1) The function of the system designed to separate rainwater into runoff and infiltration;

2) The transfer function on slopes and through the hydrological network, as well as overflow and flooding;

3) The creation of a list of projects and a summary hydrograph;

4) Applications of hydrological and hydraulic flood models.

The EU program also includes a field day (on-site data collection for hydrological and hydraulic modeling, and on-site flood risk analysis).

The tutorials focus on practical applications involving watersheds and watercourses in France and abroad, using spatialized hydrological flood models (e.g., ATHYS, MHYDAS) and hydraulic models (HEC-RAS, Diffuse Wave, Kinematic Wave, etc.): analysis of rainfall/discharge data, use of hydrological/hydraulic models, model parameterization, calibration, and validation, and analysis of the impact of development scenarios (levees, dams, etc.).

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This unit covers the concepts of mass and heat transfer in aquifers, as well as the characteristics of low-to-high-energy geothermal systems.                                                                                                                                                                                                             

The vulnerability of the groundwater resource will be assessed, and, where appropriate, methods for protecting the aquifer from pollution will be evaluated. Various techniques for remediating aquifers will also be discussed, particularly through the insights provided by numerical simulation tools.

The principles of geothermal energy will also be discussed using examples of specific systems based on the three types of geothermal energy (from shallow to very deep, and from low temperature to very high temperature).

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The EU aims to help students gain practical experience and develop a high-level perspective on hydrological modeling of watersheds dominated by agricultural activities and affected by climate change. The EU’s approach is based on four key perspectives:

1. Watershed hydrology and its place in the history of science,

2. Characteristics of Agricultural Landscapes and Implications for Modeling,

3. The issue of changing scales,

4. Practice and Critique of Hydrological Modeling.

The EU will provide advanced knowledge on production functions, transfer functions, and global and distributed modeling. It will enable students to independently apply various hydrological models (Green and Ampt, reservoir, Curve Number, unit hydrograph, reservoir cascade, etc.) and to gain a broader perspective on the parameterization, calibration, and validation of hydrological models.

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The status of a watercourse, as defined by the WFD, comprises two aspects: chemical status and ecological status. To define ecological status, several parameters must be taken into account, including those related to the water volume (as measured by flow rate) of the watercourse. In this course unit, students will conduct field or laboratory measurements to determine some of the key parameters used to assess the status of a watercourse or, more generally, in hydrological studies (floods, resource assessment, etc.).

Four topics will be covered:

- the Hydrometry component, involving the use of various flow measurement techniques (point-by-point method with an electromagnetic current meter, ADCP, dilution method, float gauging, and radar).

- the soil hydrodynamics component, involving the use of several infiltrometry methods to determine conductivity at saturation, as well as the collection of soil cylinders to determine, after drying, the porosity, dry density, and soil moisture content.

- the Hydrochemistry component, which includes:

• a field component (sampling and analysis using a multiparameter meter and a field spectrophotometer) for physicochemical parameters (temperature, electrical conductivity, pH, dissolved oxygen, TAC, PO4, and NO3, etc.)
• a laboratory portion (analysis and quantification of 4-tert-octylphenol in a surface water sample, using gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS)) to determine the presence of trace amounts of emerging contaminants from the alkylphenol ethoxylate (APEO) family, compounds found in products such as detergents, emulsifiers, and solubilizers.

- the hydrobiology component, which takes into account the presence or absence of certain species—fish, invertebrates, macrophytes (aquatic plants), and diatoms (single-celled algae)—in order to determine specific indices (IPR, IBGN, IBMR, IBD) related to the biological quality of the watercourse.

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This course focuses on natural mineral waters and thermal waters, whose unique properties and characteristics make them special resources in terms of the exploitation, management, and protection of their deposits. Students will thus be trained in the specific technical and regulatory/health aspects governing the exploitation of these resources, particularly through presentations by industry professionals and a visit to an exploitation site. They will also gain an understanding of the management and protection of this type of aquifer so that they can propose field study protocols to characterize and protect these resources, thereby acquiring hydrogeological expertise specific to this type of aquifer.

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This course unit is designed to enable students to acquire the skills necessary for collecting hydrometric data (in the broadest sense) in the field and to apply those skills to various types of case studies, with the goal of carrying out an engineering or research project in hydrogeology.

This learning unit consists of two parts:

• A first week spent entirely in the field in the Pyrénées-Orientales department;
• A second week spent in the classroom, dedicated to compiling, analyzing, and interpreting the data collected in the field.

During the^first week, the first three days are devoted to acquiring various technical skills in hydrometry (in the broad sense) in the field, so that students can then take the lead during the last two days, when they will work on a case study to be solved in project groups. They will then be divided among two experimental sites where the projects will be carried out. The topics will be presented in greater detail at the beginning of the internship so that the pre-defined groups can propose an experimental protocol to be conducted on-site, enabling them to solve their problem. The supervising team will approve the proposed protocols the day before the experiments begin.

During the^second week, students will analyze the data they collected during their fieldwork project and divide up the various analyses and interpretations of that data among themselves in order to prepare a presentation and a report that integrates and summarizes all of these results, which will be used to evaluate their work.

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This course unit enables students to carry out an engineering project from start to finish, in the form of an interdisciplinary engineering study focusing on environmental or health impacts, hydrological, hydraulic, and hydrogeological modeling, risk management, and more...

This 5-ECTS course unit is divided into two course units: a 2-ECTS course unit in Semester 3 (Interdisciplinary Project 1: Water Resources), followed by a 3-ECTS course unit in Semester 4 (Interdisciplinary Project 2: Water Resources). These two course units are inseparable, as the second serves as the culmination of the first.

During the UE Interdisciplinary Project 1: Water Resources, the steps will be:

1. Presentations of case studies by faculty members, researchers, or engineering professionals (problem statement, fieldwork, available and required data, stakeholders, calls for proposals, etc.) on topics related to water resource management, risks (flooding, drought, contamination), or, more broadly, environmental impacts. (late September)
2. Project planning phase (formation of project teams and definition of the problem-solving methodology) in conjunction with the “Project Management 2” course
3. Data collection, context analysis, establishing contacts, literature review
4. Preliminary Project Defense (mid-November)
5. Start of the study (data collection, planning fieldwork days, learning how to use specific software, etc.)

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This course unit consists of an independent project that will result in a literature review. The topic addressed will be related to the research focus of the research internship to be completed in Semester 4, but may also include related scientific topics.

This literature review will be presented in the form of a report that must adhere to the formatting standards required for scientific books and articles. The document will serve as the bibliographic foundation for the research internship report. The practical exercise required as part of the “Scientific Writing” course will be a prerequisite for beginning the bibliographic synthesis, through the process of defining the research question for your synthesis, developing keywords, etc.

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As part of this course unit, students will apply project planning and estimating the time required for each task, the FFOM matrix and the “sabotage” exercise, risk management, organizing and facilitating meetings, and oral project presentations. Other aspects of project management may be addressed on a case-by-case basis, such as financial management, the role of the project manager, relationships with partners, and the use of tools such as to-do lists, Kanban, shared calendars, etc.

Building on the Project Management course from the first year of the master’s program, the Project Management course in the second year is designed to assess students’ mastery of the skills acquired the previous year and to take them further by focusing on a longer-term project (ranging from a few weeks to a few months), whether individual or group-based, and whether a course project or a personal project.

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All future Master’s graduates—whether in the “Professional” or “Research” track—must master the tools and conventions of effective scientific writing. Improving one’s scientific writing skills is essential for showcasing one’s work and communicating it to peers, colleagues, clients, and others…

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The module is organized into three sections:                                            

(1) Climate variability and climate change: definitions, principles, the greenhouse effect, climate simulations, disaggregation, scenarios, and impacts;                                                                                            

(2) Hydrological modeling: numerical structures and representations, input and control data, state variables, parameter tuning, objective functions and optimization methods, parameter analysis and equifinality, robustness and transferability, sensitivity to climate forcings;                                                

(3) Hydrological modeling tutorials: prepare data, calibrate models, simulate flow rates, generate graphical outputs to analyze the simulations, and simulate the impact of climate change on runoff.

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The EIT’s core focus is the sustainability of water resources in light of changing water uses in both Northern and Southern climates, which are subject to climate change and significant shifts in water use, particularly in agriculture.

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The goal of this interdisciplinary course is to give students from various academic tracks who are interested the opportunity to organize an event project on a current topic related to water, in line with their personal commitments, their career goals, societal challenges, and issues surrounding global transitions and changes….

The project is led by the students, from its initial planning through its implementation during the event, with occasional support from the faculty at key stages of the project.

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The objective of this course, offered jointly with AgroParisTech’s specialized post-master’s program in “Water Management,” is to provide students with a background in development with a framework for understanding the challenges and the organization of development projects related to water (drinking water, sanitation, and agricultural water).

This teaching unit alternates between testimonials and insights from experts and professionals in the development sector on water-related issues, and testimonials from learners (enrolled in the specialized Master’s program in Water Management) or students who already have international experience in the fields of water or agriculture.

This course unit is offered as an elective to students in the Master’s program in Water Sciences, subject to a cap on the number of students.

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Water resources and their management are often discussed in terms of knowledge and principles established in developed countries in temperate zones. However, countries in the Global South—starting with the Mediterranean and Africa—present us with an extreme diversity of social and environmental situations that compel us to significantly adjust our perspectives and question the validity of certain approaches that are too detached from the reality on the ground.

Researchers working primarily in the Global South draw on their practical experiences to examine the unique characteristics of hydrological and geochemical processes in very dry or very humid tropical regions, the consequences of human activity, and the challenges of managing water resources in a sustainable manner, where possible.

A significant amount of time is devoted to the critical analysis of scientific articles dealing with water resources and their management in the Global South.

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The objective of this learning unit is to present the current and future impacts on all sectors related to the field of water.

How are climate extremes—such as droughts and floods—changing, and which regions are affected by these extremes? How does this impact groundwater and surface water resources, as well as farmland and irrigation methods?

What are the trends regarding rising sea levels and coastal areas? How does this affect current and future population movements, and what solutions can be proposed for coastal management …?

Through a series of lectures delivered by experts in various fields—covering all tracks of the Master’s in Water program—this course unit will present the latest developments in this area.

Through tutorial and lab sessions, students will work in groups on a specific topic (using an example) that combines climate change with a water-related field, in order to provide a concise overview of the subject. This project will be presented in the form of a mini-seminar and will serve as the basis for the assessment of this course unit.

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This course unit enables students to carry out an engineering project from start to finish, in the form of an interdisciplinary engineering study focusing on environmental or health impacts, hydrological, hydraulic, and hydrogeological modeling, risk management, and more...

This 5-ECTS course unit is divided into two course units: a 2-ECTS course unit in Semester 3 (Interdisciplinary Project 1: Water Resources), followed by a 3-ECTS course unit in Semester 4 (Interdisciplinary Project 2: Water Resources). These two course units are inseparable, as the second serves as the culmination of the first.

During the UE Interdisciplinary Project 2: Water Resources, the steps will be:

1. Continuation of the study (in the form of remote or professional- and EC-supervised working sessions, with field trips as needed).
2. Study presentation phase (technical report on the activities carried out and the results obtained in the field) and oral defense before a panel (mid-February).

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This course builds on the Bibliographic Project course and serves as the preparatory phase for the research internship that will be conducted in the laboratory. It aims to define the research question based on the current state of scientific knowledge, drawing on the literature review conducted in the Bibliographic Project course.

The student will therefore work with his or her internship advisor to define the research question and the initial state of the art regarding the topic to be explored. The student must also specify the methodology to be used during the “research” internship, as well as the tentative timeline.

This project will be the subject of an oral presentation before a panel consisting of an external examiner, the internship supervisor, and one of the program coordinators.

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This internship is intended for students enrolled in the “Professional” track of the Master’s in Water Resources. It represents students’ second professional experience and is a key step toward their future career integration. The content of the module depends on the host organization chosen by the student, which may be a company, an association, an NGO, or a public or international organization in the water and environmental sectors.
Students are expected to define a research problem based on a rigorous review of the current state of the art, develop a methodology, and carry out the project and analyze the results.
The entire project must be submitted in accordance with the terms agreed upon between the host organization and the academic advisor. A thesis is required for academic evaluation. This thesis may be supplemented by deliverables requested by the host organization, which may or may not be incorporated into the thesis.
Confidentiality of evaluations (written and oral) is possible.

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This internship is intended for students enrolled in the “Research” track of the Master’s in Water Resources program. It represents students’ first substantial research experience, as they become part of a research team and laboratory, and is therefore a crucial step in shaping their future career paths.

The project is expected to include a phase of problem formulation based on a rigorous review of the state of the art, a phase of developing a methodology, and a phase of implementation and analysis of results.
The entire project must be submitted in accordance with the procedures agreed upon between the host organization and the academic advisor. A thesis is required for academic evaluation.
Internship topics are varied and address a range of issues in the water and environmental sectors, reflecting the diversity of topics covered in the program and by the research teams involved in supervising and evaluating the interns.

Confidentiality of assessments (written and oral) is possible.

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