Articles de revue (11)
Finding the perfect pairs: a matchmaking of plant markers and primers for multi-marker eDNA metabarcoding
Armando Espinosa Prieto, Laurent Hardion, Nicolas Debortoli, Jean-Nicolas Beisel
Molecular Ecology Resources, e13937 (2024)
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As the scope of plant eDNA metabarcoding diversifies, so do the primers, markers and methods. A wealth of primers exists today, but their comparative evaluation is lacking behind. Similarly, multi-marker approaches are recommended but debates persist regarding barcode complementarity and optimal combinations. After a literature compilation of used primers, we compared in silico 102 primer pairs based on amplicon size, coverage and specificity, followed by an experimental evaluation of 15 primer pairs on a mock community sample covering 268 plant species and genera, and about 100 families. The analysis was done for the four most common plant metabarcoding markers, rbcL, trnL, ITS1 and ITS2 and their complementarity was assessed based on retrieved species. By focusing on existing primers, we identify common designs, promote alternatives and enhance prior-supported primers for immediate applications. The ITS2 was the best-performing marker for flowering vascular plants and was congruent to ITS1. However, the combined taxonomic breadth of ITS2 and rbcL surpassed any other combination, highlighting their high complementarity across Streptophyta. Overall, our study underscores the significance of comprehensive primer and barcode evaluations tailored to metabarcoding applications.
The social connectivity of subsurface flows: Towards a better integration of the vertical dimension in socio-hydrosystem studies
DOI/URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/wat2.1703
Anne-Lise Boyer, David Blanchon, Laurent Schmitt, Dominique Badariotti, Jean-Philippe Bedell, Jean-Nicolas Beisel, François Chabaux, Eduardo Ferreira da Silva, Frédéric Huneau, Gwenaël Imfeld, Brian F. O'Neill, Vanina Pasqualini, Olivier Radakovitch, Cybill Staentzel, François-Michel Le Tourneau
WIREs Water, e1703 (2023)
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This contribution points out that while the importance of hydrologic, geomorphic, ecological, temporal, and socio-cultural connectivity in the functioning of hydrosystems has been acknowledged in three dimensions (longitudinal, lateral, and vertical), vertical connectivity has often been overlooked. Drawing on a multidisciplinary literature review, the authors aim to highlight the socio-cultural connectivity of subsurface flows and aquifers as a crucial factor for socio-hydrosystem understanding and management. The piece builds on emergent literature which underscores how groundwater, shallow groundwater, and the hyporheic zone are coproduced by nature and society through time. Furthermore, the review explores how verticality has become an important heuristic dimension at the intersection of the environmental and social sciences, and there has been a particular focus on the hyporheic zone to look at how notions of interstitiality and (in)visibility can be better integrated with socio-hydrosystem science and management. Finally, the paper calls for further research to integrate the vertical dimension of hydrosystems into more comprehensive socio-hydrological frameworks, which remain, at times, empirically and theoretically weak on questions of social power, even if they do incorporate aspects of political systems. Especially as societies' relationships to groundwater may be at the heart of climate change adaptation strategies, greater consideration of the social connectivity to subflows is a necessary direction for sustainable water resource management and scholarship.
Towards freshwater plant diversity surveys with eDNA barcoding and metabarcoding
DOI/URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/edn3.407
Armando Espinosa Prieto, Jean-Nicolas Beisel, Pieternel Verschuren, Laurent Hardion
Environmental DNA, volume 5, issue 4, pp. 648-670 (2023)
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Providing reliable, cost-effective data on species distribution is critical to ensuring biodiversity conservation. However, many species may go unrecorded by conventional surveys, especially in aquatic environments. Environmental DNA (eDNA) barcoding and metabarcoding are alternative approaches that could complete biodiversity estimates based on species observations. While eDNA surveys are being standardized for some animal groups (e.g., fish and amphibians), research on eDNA approaches for freshwater plant communities is just starting to bear fruit. Here, we synthesized the 22 studies that used eDNA barcoding and metabarcoding to survey plant biodiversity in freshwater systems. We present evidence that contemporary aquatic plants (macrophytes) and terrestrial plants can be detected in water and surficial sediment eDNA from lakes and rivers. The phenology (e.g., senescence) of the target taxa strongly influences species detection. The main application of eDNA barcoding targets the monitoring of invasive macrophytes, and barcoding assays are available for 14 taxa. The metabarcoding approach shows a range of applications: the detection of rare macrophytes, catchment-scale floristic inventories, and sediment fingerprinting. Barcodes on the plastid genome (cpDNA) are preferred for both approaches: matK and trnH-psbA for barcoding, trnL, and rbcL for metabarcoding. The intergenic transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1) from the nuclear ribosomal DNA (nrDNA) was used for designing eDNA barcoding assays on five invasive macrophytes. In contrast, only three metabarcoding studies used the ITS1 or IST2 with newly designed primers. However, metabarcoding applications should routinely use a multi-locus approach, combining cpDNA and nrDNA barcodes. Barcode combinations and existing primers need further testing on eDNA samples. We recommend using local barcode reference databases (BRDs), ideally self-made, to circumvent taxonomic gaps and heterogeneous sequences in public BRDs. Finally, new technologies and developments like droplet digital PCR and hybridisation capture offer new perspectives for eDNA-based biodiversity monitoring approaches.
Fessenheim, source de prospérité pour l’Alsace ?
DOI/URL: https://doi.org/10.57086/rrs.257
William Groussard
Revue du Rhin Supérieur, volume 4, pp. 155-158 (2022)
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Au début de l’année 1970, une large partie de la population alsacienne s’inquiète de la construction du complexe industrialo-nucléaire de Fessenheim et des possibles risques de retombées radioactives en cas d’accident. Dans ce contexte, Électricité de France (EDF) qui doit convaincre l’opinion publique de l’utilité du projet fait paraître la brochure Fessenheim : Source de prospérité pour l’Alsace consultable aux archives départementales du Haut-Rhin (1391 W — 13 : Les rayonnements — la radioactivité de EDF) ou aux archives historiques d’EDF (926094).
Les relations entre espaces et normes : le cas de la protection de la qualité des eaux du Rhin supérieur (1950-1999)
Caline Ly Keng, Frédérique Berrod, Dominique Badariotti
Géocarrefour, 96/1 (2022)
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La qualité des eaux en France a fait l’objet d’une multitude de normes juridiques tant aux niveaux européen, international qu’aux niveaux national et régional. L’apport de notre contribution est l’étude des relations entre un espace transfrontalier, le Rhin supérieur, et l’application de normes juridiques de protection du milieu aquatique. A travers l’exemple de deux dispositifs, les cartes d’objectifs de qualité des eaux et les autorisations de rejets, nous montrons que le droit modifie l’espace de façon directe par la délimitation et la mention d’éléments géographiques directement dans les normes, ou indirecte par l’influence sur le comportement des acteurs. Les données proviennent de la collecte d’archives contenant des traces d’échanges écrites de l’administration mettant en œuvre les normes juridiques, et de ce fait nous nous intéressons aux dispositifs historiques. Notre contribution tend à mettre en évidence l’inscription de l’espace dans le droit, et à proposer un autre rapport au panorama de la politique de l’eau en replaçant les relations entre espaces et normes au cœur du questionnement.
Key factors influencing metal concentrations in sediments along Western European Rivers: a long-term monitoring study (1945-2020)
André-Marie Dendievel, Cécile Grosbois, Sophie Ayrault, Olivier Evrard, Alexandra Coynel, Maxime Debret, Thomas Gardes, Cassandra Euzen, Laurent Schmitt, François Chabaux, Thierry Winiarski, Marcel Van der Perk, Brice Mourier
Science of the Total Environment (STOTEN), volume 805, 149778 (2022)
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Since 1945, a large amount of heterogeneous data has been acquired to survey river sediment quality, especially concerning regulatory metals such as Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn. Large-scale syntheses are critical to assess the effectiveness of public regulations and the resiliency of the river systems. Accordingly, this data synthesis proposes a first attempt to decipher spatio-temporal trends of metal contamination along seven major continental rivers in Western Europe (France, Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands). A large dataset (>12,000 samples) from various sediment matrices (bed and flood deposits – BFD, suspended particulate matter – SPM, dated sediment cores – DSC) was set up based on monitoring and scientific research from the 1950s to the 2010s. This work investigates the impact of analytical protocols (matrix sampling, fractionation, extraction), location and time factors (related to geology and anthropogenic activities) on metal concentration trends. Statistical analyses highlight crossed-interactions in space and time, as well as between sediment matrices (metal concentrations in SPM ≃ DSC > BFD) and extraction procedures (also related to river lithology). Major spatio-temporal trends are found along several rivers such as (i) an increase of metal concentrations downstream of the main urban industrial areas (e.g. Paris-Rouen corridor on the Seine River, Bonn-Duisburg corridor on the Rhine River), (ii) a long-term influence of former mining areas located in crystalline zones, releasing heavily contaminated sediments for decades (Upper Loire River, Middle Meuse section), (iii) a decrease of metal concentrations since the 1970s (except for Cr and Ni, rather low and stable over time). The improvement of sediment quality in the most recent years in Europe reflects a decisive role of environment policies, such as more efficient wastewater treatments, local applications of the Water Framework Directive and urban industrial changes in the river valleys.
An infraspecific dimension of bioindication? Comparison between genotypes and ecological distribution of Potamogeton coloratus
Laurent Hardion, Etienne Chanez, Cybill Staentzel, Isabelle Combroux, Jean-Nicolas Beisel, Armando Espinosa Prieto, H. Béral, M. Tremolières, Corinne Grac
Aquatic Botany, Elsevier, 171, pp.103373 (2021)
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The role of within-species genetic variability and ecotypes has been poorly documented in research on water bioindication. Some studies already show that macrophytes could present genetic lineages with different optima for specific water parameters. In the present study, we tested this assumption on Potamogeton coloratus Hornem., a macrophyte described as characteristic of oligotrophic waters and threatened by freshwater eutrophication. Species population genetics, water parameters, and macrophyte and macroinvertebrate communities were analysed in 29 sites among three eco-regions of the eastern parts of France: Rhine Plain, Rhône Valley and Provence. The observed diversity of habitats can be divided into two main categories: the lotic hydrosystems such as springs and small watercourses often fed by groundwater, and the lentic waterbodies such as shallow pools or pond sides. Sampling sites were characterised by alkaline (mean pH 7.5 ± 0.4) and cool waters (mean 15.8 ± 4.1 °C) with low N-NH4+ concentration (median value of 20 μg/L), but large variation in other parameters (e.g. nitrates, phosphates). We found two main AFLP genotypic lineages, despite a poor genetic variability mainly distributed between populations, without regional structuring nor within-population diversity. We also sequenced only two ribotypes based on the nrDNA ITS. Genotypes, ribotypes and habitat categories were not correlated, arguing that the divergence of genotypic lineages is not due to ecotypic differentiation for P. coloratus. We highlight a putative event of long-distance dispersal, which illustrates the species ability for recolonization. Finally, we provide some suggestions for its conservation facing global changes.
Les circulations militantes antinucléaires dans l’Europe des années 1970
DOI/URL: https://ehne.fr/fr/node/21518
Valéry Bordois
Encyclopédie d’histoire numérique de l’Europe (EHNE), ISSN 2677-6588 (2021)
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Le mouvement antinucléaire en Europe se caractérise au cours de la décennie 1970 par des mobilisations qui apparaissent comme fortement ancrées sur le plan local autour des sites de construction des centrales. Dès le premier grand rassemblement, qui a lieu sur le sol français à Fessenheim en Alsace, les aspirations des militants à porter la mobilisation à une échelle européenne sont toutefois perceptibles. Elles mûrissent ensuite au cours de la décennie mais se heurtent à de nombreux écueils qui en limitent la portée. L’attention que l’on peut accorder aux circulations transnationales et à leurs connexions avec d’autres causes permet néanmoins de repenser la dynamique du mouvement antinucléaire en Europe, en s’appuyant notamment sur les développements récents du champ historiographique consacré aux années 1968.
Relational territoriality and the spatial embeddedness of nuclear energy: A comparison of two nuclear power plants in Germany and France
Teva Meyer
Energy Research & Social Science, volume 2021, 101823 (2021)
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The ongoing spatial turn of both energy research and transition studies have highlighted the need for a stronger understanding of spatial configurations to grasp the heterogeneity of energy transition pathways. While previous works predominantly focused on territorial context inhibiting or driving renewable energy development, the dynamics of incumbent energy systems remain understudied. This is particularly the case for nuclear power, which epitomizes the diversity of energy trajectories in decarbonization policies, swinging between “renaissance” and “decline”. Consistent with energy geographers’ call for new research characterizing the path dependencies which strengthen incumbent systems, this paper offers to assess the spatial embeddedness of nuclear power plants by comparing the closure of two facilities in Germany (Neckarwestheim) and France (Fessenheim). The two case studies were chosen for the divergent intensities of controversies triggered locally by their shutdown. We introduce Raffestin’s conception of relational territoriality, different from the behavioralist and Sackian approach previously used in energy geography, in order to identify and describe the spatial elements of nuclear power path dependencies. Results show more robust relational territorialities in Fessenheim than in Neckarwestheim. Opposition against closures appears stronger where the facility induced deeper forms of spatial embeddedness. The path dependency of nuclear power plants is co-produced by their territory preexisting spatial characteristics and social representations, the spatial transformative power of the monetary flow occasioned by the plants, the actions of the site’s workers and the normative elements governing its spatial existence. However, results show no direct influence of local communities on the elaboration of national nuclear policies.
Apports de la cartographie du droit à la géohistoire des pollutions industrielles des eaux du fleuve Rhin
DOI/URL: https://doi.org/10.3917/ag.733.0250
Caline Ly Keng, Frédérique Berrod, Kenji Fujiki, Dominique Badariotti
Annales de géographie, volume 733-734, no. 3-4, pp. 250-273 (2020)
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Les pollutions chroniques et accidentelles des eaux du Rhin les plus importantes sont survenues avec l’avènement des industries chimiques et lourdes. Dès lors, une multitude de textes juridiques (conventions internationales, directives de l’Union européenne, lois, décrets) a été élaborée afin de lutter contre la pollution industrielle. Les intentions de cette contribution sont d’apporter des pistes méthodologiques à l’aide d’outils numériques d’une part, pour la reconstruction partielle de la géohistoire des rejets d’effluents industriels ; d’autre part, pour l’évaluation de l’effectivité du droit dans le temps. L’objectif est de comprendre les liens entre cadre normatif et rejets d’effluents industriels et son impact sur le Rhin. Nous avons choisi un site d’étude précis : le Grand Canal d’Alsace et le Vieux Rhin afin d’évaluer l’intérêt de la cartographie juridique dans l’étude des pollutions industrielles. S’agissant d’un projet encore exploratoire, nous exposons ici uniquement la démarche adoptée sur la rive gauche française du Rhin.
Managing and sharing multidisciplinary information in human-environment observatories: feedbacks and recommendations from the French DRIIHM network
Fanny Arnaud, Emilie Lerigoleur, Arnaud Jean-Charles, Iwan Le Berre, Corinne Pardo, Jean-Claude Raynal, Fozzani Jérôme, Kristell Michel, Marie-Laure Trémélo, Dad Roux-Michollet
Journal of Interdisciplinary Methodologies and Issues in Sciences, 23 juillet 2020, Vol. 6 - Observatoires scientifiques Milieux/Sociétés, nouveaux enjeux (2020)
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The LabEx DRIIHM is a research network that gathers together 13 Human-Environment Observatories (OHM) focused on anthropogenically modified socio-ecosystems in France and worldwide. Within the open science context, a Research Data Infrastructure (RDI) was implemented brick by brick to describe, visualize, and disseminate multidisciplinary long-tail datasets produced by the DRIIHM community. The RDI contains both tools and standards at the network scale, and specific tools at the individual observatory scale. This paper describes the building blocks of the RDI and analyses its strengths and challenges on the basis of engineer feedback and user surveys. Recommendations for improving the RDI, better measuring its effectiveness, and enhancing open science awareness, have been formalized for the SO-DRIIHM project that will start in 2020. Cross-disciplinary approaches using DataViz tools have emerged already, and these enrich the way in which scientific information is disseminated, and could raise new scientific issues.
Thèses de doctorat (3)
Reconstruction spatio-temporelle des dépôts métalliques le long d’un hydrosystème fluvial fortement anthropisé. Combinaison d’approches géochimiques, hydrogéomorphologiques et géochronologiques appliquée au Rhin supérieur.
DOI/URL: https://www.theses.fr/s270912
Cassandra Euzen
Soutenue le 19 décembre, Strasbourg, France (2023)
AquADN – L’ADN environnemental comme descripteur des plantes aquatiques et indicateur environnemental
DOI/URL: https://www.theses.fr/s269502
Armando Espinosa Prieto
Soutenue le 16 novembre, Strasbourg, France (2023)
Régulation des rejets industriels et encadrement de la qualité des eaux du Rhin, dans un contexte réglementaire multi-échelles
DOI/URL: https://www.theses.fr/2021STRAH011
Caline Ly Keng
Soutenue le 10 décembre, Strasbourg, France (2021)
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Dans le cadre de cette thèse, nous proposons d’identifier plusieurs dispositifs géo-légaux plaçant au centre les normes techniques et de rendre compte de leur effectivité. L’étude montre que l’utilisation croissante des normes techniques dès la fin du XXème siècle tend à être harmonisée à l’échelle de l’Union européenne. L’autorisation de rejets, délivrée au préalable par l’administration, prescrit des seuils limites de rejets pour chaque industrie. A partir des données d’archives, nous avons montré que l’élaboration de ces autorisations impactait les comportements des acteurs qui appliquent la loi et donc indirectement l’espace par les décisions qu’ils prennent. A l’inverse, un autre dispositif qui intervient après l’autorisation de rejet est le registre des émissions industrielles dans le milieu aquatique (EPTR). La lutte contre la pollution industrielle fait également intervenir les dispositifs juridiques de protection de l’eau. Il s’agit de dispositifs qui protègent directement le milieu aquatique tels que l’obligation de respecter des normes de qualités environnementales pour certaines substances. De même, d’autres dispositifs protègent indirectement la ressource en eau en délimitant une aire protégée comme la réserve naturelle de la Petite Camargue Alsacienne.L’étude de la coévolution des rejets industriels et de la qualité des eaux montrent finalement la complexité du phénomène tant au niveau de la définition commune de normes techniques qu’à la mise en place de dispositifs de mises en oeuvre à l’échelle du Rhin. Cette thèse donne un autre regard sur les activités anthropiques, en l’occurrence les rejets industriels, impactant l’espace rhénan en mobilisant différentes données.
Rapports d'étude (1)
Feasibility Study: Innovation Region Fessenheim
DOI/URL: https://tinyurl.com/582au5st
EUCOR, URCforSR, Université de Strasbourg (OHM Fessenheim), Universität Freiburg, TriRhenaTech, KIT, Université de Haute-Alsace
Rapport remis aux États français et allemands (2022)
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The feasibility study Innovation Region Fessenheim presents ideas for innovation pilots in the wider Fessenheim-Colmar-Freiburg region. The focus of the study is on developing a pilot innovation region that aims to attain emission neutrality and sustainability in the energy system based on innovative new technologies and promote local value addition and job creation. Based on a bilateral understanding, the feasibility study will develop a role model for cross-border European regional development. The study proposes ideas for demonstration projects particularly in the fields of “Green Batteries”, “Green Hydrogen” and “Smart Grids” and sheds light on the interlinkages and co-benefits of their potential implementation. The main idea of the feasibility study is to identify viable transformation fields for the innovation region by factoring in the total regional primary energy consumption in order to induce a transformation towards a future-oriented industry and energy market. After analyzing the regional assets of the Upper Rhine and the Fessenheim innovation region and linking them to the postulated goals of the Projet de Territoire, ideas for pilot development that fulfill the requirements of the political requests, highlighted in the Projet de Territoire, were identified. The ideas for the development of pilots as best practice examples for the region are based on four competence groups in the aforementioned technology fields of “Green Batteries”, “Green Hydrogen” and “Smart Grids”. The fourth competence group links the pilot ideas from the three technology innovation groups by framing them in a territorial context. For the acceleration of the regional transformation, the technical innovation pilots, as carriers for this transformation, are described comprehensively in the report along with information on the interlinkages between them, their technical readiness and possible timelines. Moreover, the territorial framework competence group elaborates on the constraints and opportunities in respect to economic rationality, environmental impact, legal aspects, and societal acceptability of the technical innovation ideas. For all technical innovation pilots, a detailed description in the form of pilot sheets is provided in the attachment. Finally, in the conclusion, a list of next steps for possible activities on political, societal and industrial level is provided.
Actes de conférence (1)
Designing robust DNA barcode libraries for metabarcoding of freshwater plants by integrating herbarium collections and contemporary floristic inventories
DOI/URL: https://doi.org/10.3897/aca.4.e64713
Armando Espinosa Prieto, Laurent Hardion, Jean-Nicolas Beisel
ARPHA Conference Abstracts, 4, e64713 (2021)
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Aquatic environmental DNA (eDNA) studies have considerably taken off during the last 10 years, promptly establishing eDNA as a new approach to monitoring the ecological status of European surface waters. On the one hand due to the numerous biological methods based on aquatic species, on the other hand due to the development of group-specific primers that allowed discrimination between species or at least genera. Understandably, rapid achievements were made for animal groups that include a small number of species (fish, amphibians) whereas it is still in development for plants, due to the complexity of obtaining a universal barcode applicable to eDNA for the latter. Nonetheless, research in plant eDNA barcoding and metabarcoding is making significant progress, mainly expanding in the detection of plant species in freshwater ecosystems. With a multi-barcode eDNA metabarcoding approach in mind, we are preparing a plant DNA barcode reference library for our study area, the Northern Vosges Regional Natural Park. Drawing from this experience and supported by current publications, we focus on the strong connection between metabarcoding of plant eDNA and floristic inventories, local barcode libraries, and herbaria. Prior knowledge of species distribution and abundant genetic data are the key to increasing species detection through eDNA (Cordier et al. 2020). We ought to standardise this practice before eDNA metabarcoding of plants can cover large river basins and span through time. Following the consensus on a combination of barcodes for the plant kingdom, the most recurrent ones in freshwater eDNA studies include the plastid DNA trnL, matK, rbcL regions and the nrDNA internal transcribed spacers (ITS) although it is likely that new barcodes emerge from further research. To date, the selection of primers seems to be of utmost importance since they offer different properties based on the research question. Seminal efforts have focused on the development of species-specific assays based on tailor-made primers. These have demonstrated the reliability of eDNA to be used for monitoring the distribution of aquatic plant species. Today, three of the most common aquatic invaders, Elodea canadensis, Elodea nutalli and Hydrilla verticillata have now their own assays aiming to identify the earliest invasions (Gantz et al. 2018). On the contrary, “universal” primers, such as those from White et al. (1990) within the ITS, prove to be useful in metabarcoding studies where many plant species from differing families are involved (Coghlan et al. 2020). Despite the fast-moving research in aquatic plant eDNA, DNA barcode reference libraries still lack many species, hindering the progress of applying eDNA surveys to large river basins through metabarcoding. Such studies still rely heavily on building local genetic libraries which is extremely time consuming and require important taxonomic knowledge of species, encumbered by the polyphyly of aquatic plant groups.
Communications orales (28)
L’ADNe comme descripteur des plantes aquatiques et des zones humides : du ruisseau au fleuve
DOI/URL: https://tinyurl.com/439ppwuu
Armando Espinosa Prieto, Laurent Hardion, Jean-Nicolas Beisel
3ème meeting du réseau ADN-O, 29 nov. - 1er déc., Cestas, France (2023)
Impacts of public policy on the rebound effect of green heating services
Nhat-Anh Nguyen, Anne Stenger, Phu Nguyen-Van
Climate economics chair annual conference “Policies toward carbon neutrality in times of crisis”, October 11-12, Paris Dauphine, France (2023)
Rebound effects: the longer distance from social optima
Nhat-Anh Nguyen, Phu Nguyen-Van, Anne Stenger
Joint workshop between the Philipps University of Marburg, Université de Strasbourg and Toyo University, September 18-19, Marburg, Germany (2023)
Rebound effects in the era of energy transition
DOI/URL: https://tinyurl.com/y54v75pa
Nhat-Anh Nguyen, Phu Nguyen-Van, Anne Stenger
The 12th Congress of the Asian Association of Environmental and Resource Economics (AAERE), August 29-30, Tokyo, Japan (2023)
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We review rebound effects in the energy transition for household end-use services toward renewable energy, including photovoltaic, biomass, green electricity, and heat pump. This secondary effect has a rich body on a narrow framework of energy efficiency (Font Vivanco et al., 2022), which can potentially neglect the multifaceted nature of mixing energy. Moreover, this assumption of rationality may lead to inadequately informed policy recommendations when consumers potentially have an environmental preference since adopting low-carbon sources as a private contribution against climate change. Rebound effects expand consumers’ utility but need to be restrained due to negative externalities on a third party, counting fuel consumption (air pollution, global warming) and the overuse of energy-based services (traffic congestion, blackout, increased costs) (Chan and Kotchen, 2014). In the context of drastic climate change and energy-saving urgency, understanding the mechanism of renewable selection and each source’s rebound effect is very important in the policy designs in a particular context. Our objectives are to locate the adoption possibility and individual rebound effects on each vital source of renewable in the sense of economic approaches. We found that adopting a fuel-hybrid system is more complicated than upgrading the higher energy efficiency, leading to households’ reluctance. Still, it creates relatively lower rebound effects if accepting heterogeneity of measurements. Firstly, promoting renewable energy depends on multiple factors, such as the availability of natural resources, relative prices, and residential characteristics. Secondly, low-carbon users demand compensation in the bounded-rationality state for better environmental quality or the balance sheet of carbon emission. The blend of economics and human psychology is a modern trend of research on energy-related decisions of households, particularly the energy efficiency gap for renewable energies and its rebound effect (Exadaktylos and van den Bergh, 2021; Dütschke et al., 2018). This emergence helps us clarify the standard and environmental rebound effects (Dorner, 2019; Khazzoom, 1980) available in empirical evidence, and the tax-induced rebound effect exists in the theoretical works (Nhat-Anh et al., 2023; Haibara, 2020). However, pioneer research proposes the standard formulae, the debate on measuring the potential and actual savings, and the fuel source of extra usage (Galvin et al., 2021; Toroghi and Oliver, 2019). The additional post-use of power grids is preferred for calculating the direct rebound effect. The biomass and heat pumps potentially lead to the highest size (33.3%) (Smeets et al., 2014; Grimes et al., 2016). The literature abundance on solar technologies gives a broad interval from negative (Li et al., 2020) up to 20% by Deng and Newton (2017). The green electricity only creates from electricity usage increases their energy use post-adoption by 1–3%, and around 11% for low-income groups (Jacobsen et al., 2012). The environmental and tax-induced rebound effects depend on the presence of fiscal and behavioral
interventions. In summary, gaining insight into the mechanisms underlying all rebound effects is crucial to accelerate the mitigation targets. On balance between the adoption rate and rebound effect, we found green electricity provides broad access with the lowest rebound effect (Bogdanov et al., 2021) due to the high premium of extra usage. In contrast, solar photovoltaics provides the lowest financial barrier (Vartiainen et al., 2020) with medium rebounds. Although we dig into the individual rebound effect, the empirical evidence of moral licensing and peer influence is faint despite the strong linkage in emerging economics and human psychology theories. Therefore, the gaps in behavioral anomalies need to work on with the extension of both direct and indirect rebound effects.
Rebound effects: the longer distance from social optima
DOI/URL: https://tinyurl.com/4e72dxuu
Nhat-Anh Nguyen, Phu Nguyen-Van, Anne Stenger
The 12th Congress of the Asian Association of Environmental and Resource Economics (AAERE), August 29-30, Tokyo, Japan (2023)
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The current global warming demands each household behave responsibly in the green transition and energy saving, primarily residential heating services as the largest energy consumption (Dubois et al., 2019). Adopting residential heating technology based on renewable energies (RET) is seen as a pro-environmental effort that benefits globally by reducing emissions. Given this costly public contribution, bounded-rational households tend to overconsume heating services, known as the rebound effect (Exadaktylos and van den Bergh, 2021; Dütschke et al., 2018). This compensation demand is usually positive (from a weak effect of 1% to 25% to a backfire effect - of more than 100 %) (Sommer, 2018; Kim and Trevena, 2021; Vélez-Henao and García-Mazo, 2022) and increases with the heating services served by renewables (Nhat-Anh, 2023). In the role of market-failure fixer, the government makes an effort to accelerate these pro-environmental behaviors and restrain rebound effects from the ex-ante perspective by designing relevant fiscal tools. In that sense, we would like to introduce a microeconomic model as a theoretical framework for a contextualized experiment in the second part. Our models will consist of two scenarios where a representative household maximizes its utility, but the social planner optimizes for all. In that way, we can determine the difference between individual equilibria and social optima in energy usage. Given public interventions to reduce this gap, such as a tax, subsidy, and quotas on energy, there is a new types of rebound effect found in the decentralized context of this Pigouvian tax besides the standard and behavioral rebound effect (Dorner, 2019; Sorrell et al., 2009). Inviting the cardinal utility function in the form of Constant Relative Risk Aversion, our paper found concrete results in both theoretical models and the simulation of choice-based experiment, including equilibria of heating services and global pollution, a tax on conventional energy and revenue-neutral subsidy, and the magnitude of rebound effects. The model’s basic setup involves a social planner with N consumers in the market; a gap exists in the aggregate pollution in the decentralized context and the social planner ’s solution. To reduce this overconsumption of energy, the optimal tax and quotas are located and satisfy the condition of the feasibility of RET and implicit pricing system. We found three rebound effects caused to a greater extent by upgrading RET characteristics and tax on energy. Firstly, the standard effect of the higher heating generation capacity in the exact mechanism of the higher energy efficiency (Khazzoom, 1980). Secondly, the behavioral rebound effect is generated by the higher environmental preference and mitigation effort like the marginal environmental damage (Dorner, 2019). Finally, we highlight the new mechanism of the rebound effect from the tax on energy and subsidy, namely the tax-induced rebound effect (Haibara, 2020). We assume that the subsidy scheme for households adopting RET depends entirely on the tax revenue levied on the quota of conventional fuel sources. Indeed, this taxation reduces the pricing gap between two fuel types and lessens the implicit price of heating services. Furthermore, the subsidy is also an extra disposable income that triggered the rebound effect once more. Overall, our paper strengthens the link between the rebound effect and the private provision of public goods in the context of residential heating services powered by renewable energy (Kotchen, 2009). This general-equilibrium model provides a comprehensive framework for understanding rebound effects (Galvin et al., 2021; Toroghi and Oliver, 2019) as the solid foundation for the successive choice-based experiment. We estimate all types of rebound effects regarding tax and subsidy, RET parameters, and environmental preference taste are positive. The findings of the proposed model show the existence of the Pigouvian tax and subsidy scheme toward social optima. In the granted project, we anticipate running the laboratory experiment this July, then have preliminary results afterward. In collaboration with other Asian universities, we expect this protocol will be the economical tool to design fiscal policies on energy and understand this behavioral phenomenon in the new context.
Reconstructing a River Temporal Trajectory Through the Metal Composition of Historical Floodplain Deposition (Upper Rhine)
Cassandra Euzen, François Chabaux, Gilles Rixhon, Thierry Perrone, Frank Preusser, Frédérique Eyrolle, Dominique Badariotti, Laurent Schmitt
Goldschmidt, July 9-14, Lyon, France (2023)
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Reconstructing temporal evolution of geochemical composition of highly anthropized rivers is essential to evaluate and model the impact of regulations taken to reduce water pollution but also to predict their future trajectory. Hydrogeochemical monitoring performed by water agencies only goes back to a few decades (> 80’s). Moreover, datasets usually are heterogeneous and merely focus on a few contaminants of environmental concern at that time. Geochemical analysis of well-dated floodplain sediments allows reconstructing the chemical evolution of rivers over the last century -or more- since most contaminants associate with solid particles transferred by rivers. The potential of this approach is illustrated in this study by the accurate dating and analysis of fine sediments collected along a 105 cm-deep profile from the Upper Rhine floodplain (Rhinau Island). The combination of historical planimetric (old maps) and hydrological data with geochronological constraints (IRSL single grain, 137Cs, 210Pb xs ) provides a robust chronological framework for this sedimentary archive. The analysis of major and trace element concentrations within the collected sediments highlight metal enrichments along the profile (e.g., Pb, Zn, Cu). For most of them, enrichments reached a maximum in the late 1970s-early 1980s followed by a decrease until today, although enrichment peaks may have been earlier for some other metals. For metals such as Pb, Zn and Cu, the progressive decrease from 1980s likely results from both the evolution of human activities in the upstream basin as well as the implemented regulations reducing industrial and urban metallic releases into the Rhine River. We suggest here that interdisciplinary studies of fluvial sedimentary archives, including hydro-geomorphology, can greatly help reconstructing the history of metal pollution in the world's largest rivers and to understand their evolution in response to human pressure, including industrial, urban and agricultural activities.
Transitions énergie-climat locales & trajectoires systémiques scénarisées – Application aux territoires autour de Fessenheim, Haut-Rhin
Florian Labaude, Nadège Blond, Thierry de Larochelambert
Séminaire de Recherche UHA "Durabilité : transitions, risques, territoires", 6 juillet, Mulhouse, France (2023)
Impacts of public policy on the rebound effect of green heating services
Nhat-Anh Nguyen, Phu Nguyen-Van, Anne Stenger
The 28th Annual Conference of the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (EAERE), June 27-30, Limassol, Cyprus (2023)
L’écosystème de Fessenheim : impact et éléments de prospective territoriale suite à la décision de fermeture de la centrale nucléaire
Patrick Rondé, Kenji Fujiki, Olivier Finance, H. Ott
59ème colloque de l’Association de science régionale de langue française (ASRDLF 2023), 28-30 juin, Le Tampon, La Réunion (2023)
Evaluation of scenarios for an energy, economic and social transition of the Fessenheim region
Florian Labaude, Nadège Blond, Thierry de Larochelambert
International symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, June 5-7, Strasbourg, France (2023)
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Une analyse du système énergétique du territoire de Fessenheim sera présentée. Une base de données énergie-climat a été créée pour caractériser la structure du système (consommations, productions, stockages par secteur d'activités et vecteurs, émissions de gaz à effet de serre, coûts). Le modèle EnergyPLAN est utilisé pour simuler et programmer les transformations possibles du système aux horizons 2030 et 2050 vers la neutralité carbone.
Monitoring the biodiversity of large rivers with environmental DNA metabarcoding
Armando Espinosa Prieto, Laurent Hardion, Jean-Nicolas Beisel
International symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, June 5-7, Strasbourg, France (2023)
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A travers une approche metabarcoding de l'ADN environnemental (ADNe), permettant d'identifier un ensemble d'espèces à partir d'un échantillon environnemental (eau, sédiments, air), nous cherchons à inventorier la diversité végétale du Rhin supérieur. La première application de cette approche pour identifier la végétation aquatique des grands milieux est prometteuse (Ji et al., 2021), mais son évaluation et calibration sont encore nécessaires. Pour ce faire, nous avons filtré 24 litres d'eau dans 8 sites entre Bâle et Strasbourg à la fois dans le Grand Canal d'Alsace et le Vieux Rhin. L'analyse des données de séquençage pour chacun des sites et sur l'ensemble a révélé la végétation dominante de cette section du Rhin. La détection de plantes terrestres à partir d'échantillons d'eau corrobore le résultat de Ji et al. (2021) et étend les potentielles applications de cette approche. Ji, F., Yan, L., Yan, S., Qin, T., Shen, J., & Zha, J. (2021). Estimating aquatic plant diversity and distribution in rivers from Jingjinji region, China, using environmental DNA metabarcoding and a traditional survey method. Environmental Research, 199, 111348. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2021.111348
Environmental DNA: a plant diversity and environmental indicator for freshwater ecosystems
DOI/URL: https://tinyurl.com/hypatw4x
Armando Espinosa Prieto, Laurent Hardion, Jean-Nicolas Beisel
ED413 - Congrès des doctorants, 29 novembre, Strasbourg, France (2022)
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Within a decade, environmental DNA (eDNA) has become an accepted tool in many countries for studying biodiversity, from detecting target species to describing entire communities (Taberlet et al. 2018). This expanding research takes advantage of the democratization of high-throughput sequencing to massively sequence residual DNA fragments extracted from different matrices (e.g., water, soil, faeces, sediments, archaeological remains). Recent proofs of concept describe this molecular approach as complementary, equivalent, or even more efficient than traditional field surveys for describing fish, amphibian (Valentini et al. 2016), and invertebrate (Elbrecht et al. 2016; Meyer et al. 2020) communities. Conversely, applications using eDNA remain rare for plant communities in aquatic environments, with less than 30 papers to date. Our work aims to develop a methodology for the detection and recognition of plant species based on residual DNA fragments found in aquatic environments. We have initiated a first application of this method as a biomonitoring tool in the monitoring of stream restoration in the Northern Vosges Regional Natural Park. This 'classical' eDNA metabarcoding approach is accompanied by the development of a DNA barcode database of more than 500 wetland plant species for the Grand-Est Region, including threatened, invasive, and unknown species (bryophytes, Characeae). In parallel, water samples from the old Rhine River and the Rhine canal were taken to test the limits of the method on larger hydrosystems compared to headstreams. River dynamics and water physicochemical properties influence eDNA concentration and quality hence its ability to provide a comprehensive signal of the species present. This project is also structured around the dismantling of the nuclear power plant in Fessenheim aiming to test the responsiveness of the method to a quickly changing system. All in all, comparison of the eDNA signal from different hydrosystems informs on the utility of this method as a monitoring tool for aquatic vegetation.
Impacts of public policy on the rebound effect of green heating services
Nhat-Anh Nguyen, Phu Nguyen-Van, Anne Stenger
The 11th Congress of the Asian Association of Environmental and Resource Economics (AAERE): A pathway towards Carbon Neutrality in Asia, session “Low carbon building, house, and home appliances”, August 19-20, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (2022)
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The increasing consequences of global warming are demanding behavioral changing in energy household consumption (Dubois et al., 2019). As the most significant share of the residential energy uses, heating services need to be saved and supplied by renewable energy . The development of renewable energy-based technology (RET) comes up with a higher heating generation capacity, lower ecological damages, and a competitive price for broader access. Although there are multiple options for household selection, solar thermal or photovoltaic, heat pumps, biomass boilers, or green electricity, several disadvantages exist for all, such as the low heating generation and the technical complications in adoption and operation, and in addition a higher investment cost (Fullerton et al., 2020). While consumers utilize low-carbon sources for thermal comfort as a pro-environmental effort to reduce negative externalities, this mitigation effort is partially offset due to the rebound effect that motivates households to use more heating services in response to any improvements in characteristics above. The linkages between renewable uses and the rebound effect are not well known and require a new comprehensive approach to inform the energy policies (Galvin et al., 2021; Toroghi et al., 2019).
A growing body of literature on RET adoption and energy consumption, in general, confirms the rebound effect in the US, EU, and Australian continent. The magnitude of this unintended effect on solar thermal and photovoltaic varies from the negative (Li et al., 2020; Havas et al., 2015) up to 20% (Deng et al., 2017). This existence also is supported by the case of heat pump retrofit in the UK and New Zealand where household electricity use was found to increase (Grimmer et al., 2011; Chitnis et al., 2013). Switching to green electricity or adopting modern biomass boilers also discloses a new kind of rebound effect, especially in low-income and poorly educated groups (Harding et al., 2019; Smeets et al., 2014). Although a little evidence for Asian countries, the rapid commercialization of RET in these areas need bold action to restrain the rebound effect if it would be unforeseen large.In this paper, we introduce a comprehensive micro-utility theoretical model to explain the main attributes of households to adopt RET for residential heating services and quantify the rebound effect as the secondary effect. Applying the model of two fuels (fossil energy and renewable energy) for one heating service (Chan and Gillingham, 2015), the utility-maximizing consumer will choose the optimal number of heating services and environmental damages (Dorner, 2019) based on the average implicit price containing carbon tax and green subsidy (Ito, 2014; Borenstein, 2015). In this model, the heating generation capacity and the carbon mitigation efforts are two main characteristics on which consumers base their choice between fossil energy and renewable energy. Moreover, as green heating appliances are more expensive than their fossil fuel-based counterpart, their utilization is subsidized by the government.
Our results provide some insight into the RET adoption and the existence of rebound effects in the context of residential heating services. The theoretical results show that the interrelationship of key features of low-carbon technology and elements making up the fuel price will decide the likelihood of adopting green heating appliances. The determinants of selecting low-carbon fuel technologies are carbon tax, subsidy, and capital and operating costs. However, the RET adoption is beneficial only if the rebound effect is low. We recommend that only selective technologies be subsidized in order to increase consumers’ welfare and mitigate environmental damages. The combination of public policies and behavioral interventions could enhance the expected outcomes without creating market distortion and fiscal burden.
Our microeconomic model provides comprehensive insights into a household’s decisions on adoption and the rebound effect in the new era of the energy transition. To adapt to the demand of a specific country in Asia, this case study of heating appliances also is extended possibly to other household services such as cooling and personal hybrid vehicles. Finally, we suggest several paths to find further support from empirical results.
Keywords: Renewable energy, rebound effect, pro-environmental efforts, micro-economic model, heating service.
References
Borenstein, S. (2015). A microeconomic framework for evaluating energy efficiency rebound and some implications. The Energy Journal 36(1).
Chan, N. W. and K. Gillingham (2015). The microeconomic theory of the rebound effect and its welfare implications. Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists 2(1), 133–159.
Chitnis, M., Sorrell, S., Druckman, A., Firth, S. K., & Jackson, T. (2013). Turning lights into flights: estimating direct and indirect rebound effects for UK households. Energy policy, 55, 234-250.
Deng, G., & Newton, P. (2017). Assessing the impact of solar PV on domestic electricity consumption: Exploring the prospect of rebound effects. Energy Policy, 110, 313-324.
Dorner, Z. (2019). A behavioral rebound effect. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 98, 102257.
Dubois, G., B. Sovacool, C. Aall, M. Nilsson, C. Barbier, A. Herrmann, S. Bruyère, C. Andersson, B. Skold,
F. Nadaud, F. Dorner, K. R. Moberg, J. P. Ceron, H. Fischer, D. Amelung, M. Baltruszewicz, J. Fischer, F. Benevise, V. R. Louis, and R. Sauerborn (2019). It starts at home? climate policies targeting household consumption and behavioral decisions are key to low-carbon futures. Energy Research Social Science 52, 144–158.
Fullerton, D., & Ta, C. L. (2020). Costs of energy efficiency mandates can reverse the sign of rebound. Journal of public economics, 188, 104225.
Galvin, R., E. Dütschke, and J. Weiß (2021). A conceptual framework for understanding rebound effects with renewable electricity: A new challenge for decarbonizing the electricity sector. Renewable Energy 176, 423–432.
Grimes, A., Young, C., Arnold, R., Denne, T., Howden-Chapman, P., Preval, N., & Telfar-Barnard, L. (2011). Warming up New Zealand: Impacts of the New Zealand Insulation Fund on metered household energy use. Ministry of Economic Development.
Harding, M., & Rapson, D. (2019). Does absolution promote sin? A conservationist’s dilemma. Environmental and resource economics, 73(3), 923-955.
Havas, L., Ballweg, J., Penna, C., & Race, D. (2015). Power to change: Analysis of household participation in a renewable energy and energy efficiency programme in Central Australia. Energy Policy, 87, 325-333.
Ito, K. (2014). Do consumers respond to marginal or average price? evidence from nonlinear electricity pricing. American Economic Review 104(2), 537–63.
Li, X., Lim, M. K., Ni, D., Zhong, B., Xiao, Z., & Hao, H. (2020). Sustainability or continuous damage: A behavior study of prosumers’ electricity consumption after installing household distributed energy resources. Journal of Cleaner Production, 264, 121471.
Smeets, E., Tabeau, A., van Berkum, S., Moorad, J., van Meijl, H., & Woltjer, G. (2014). The impact of the rebound effect of the use of first generation biofuels in the EU on greenhouse gas emissions: A critical review. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 38, 393-403.
Toroghi, S. H., & Oliver, M. E. (2019). Framework for estimation of the direct rebound effect for residential photovoltaic systems. Applied Energy, 251, 113391.
De la production au bricolage scalaire : politique des échelles dans la transition énergétique à Fessenheim
Teva Meyer
Congrès du centenaire de l’Union Géographique Internationale (UGI), session « Pour une géographie des transitions territoriales ? Cadres conceptuels, méthodologiques, et approches critiques », 18-22 juillet, Paris, France (2022)
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La fermeture de la centrale nucléaire de Fessenheim en juin 2020 a été précédée de la signature d’un document programmatique, le Projet d’avenir du territoire de Fessenheim (PAT), devant accompagner son arrêt et assurer une reconversion industrielle. Rédigé par l’État et les collectivités territoriales, il institue trois échelles spatiales qui cadrent la transition post-nucléaire. Cette communication propose de prendre le cas de Fessenheim pour renforcer nos connaissances sur les pratiques concrètes de la politique des échelles au sein de transitions énergétiques (Palle, 2021) en interrogeant (1) les conséquences de l’inscription de ces trois niveaux sur la matérialisation de la transition et (2) le jeu social ayant mené à leur établissement. En nuançant une unique approche constructiviste des échelles, parfois critiquée pour sa nature téléologique (Becker & Naumann, 2017 ; Bridge et al, 2013), nous nous concentrons sur les « scalecraft » (Fraser, 2010) des acteurs, le travail artisanal, les techniques, compétences ainsi que les difficultés qui sous-tendent tout assemblage scalaire (Papanastasiou, 2019). Cette proposition s’appuie sur la construction d’un corpus d’articles de la presse régionale ainsi que sur 46 entretiens menés avec les acteurs du PAT. Nos recherches montrent que les échelles du PAT, dont l’existence cadre la physionomie de la transition post-Fessenheim, reposent sur trois dynamiques : un effort de naturalisation des échelles par les acteurs via une rhétorique d’économisation du problème et ainsi que l’interprétation du droit ; une mise en politique de la transition autour de l’enjeu conflictuel des pertes fiscales ; un travail de lobbying des collectivités. En conclusion, nous identifions sept facteurs participant à la construction des échelles dans le projet de transition.
Quand les territoires sont envoyés au charbon : vers la territorialisation d’un modèle de gouvernance imposé par l’État
Sascha Perroux
Congrès du centenaire de l’Union Géographique Internationale (UGI), session « Pour une géographie des transitions territoriales ? Cadres conceptuels, méthodologiques, et approches critiques », 18-22 juillet, Paris, France (2022)
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La fermeture des dernières centrales à charbon en France (Cordemais, Le Havre, Saint-Avold et Gardanne), annoncée par la loi Energie-Climat de novembre 2019, relève d’une décision gouvernementale de mettre fin à une activité polluante du secteur électrique français. Dans le même temps, l’Etat annonce sa volonté d’accompagner les acteurs locaux dans la reconversion de leur territoire et le développement de nouvelles activités. Les acteurs locaux doivent donc composer avec cette injonction d’arrêter leur activité industrielle, pourvoyeuse d’emplois et de revenus à différentes échelles, pour trouver des solutions permettant d’engager leur territoire dans une dynamique post-charbon. Dans le cadre de mes travaux de thèse portant sur la fermeture des centrales à charbon, nous comparons et analysons la mobilisation des acteurs et l’émergence de différentes trajectoires de transition énergétique sur ces quatre territoires. A travers des entretiens menés auprès des différentes parties prenantes, il apparaît assez vite que le modèle de mobilisation et de coordination des acteurs voulu initialement par l’Etat trouve ses limites dans les contextes socio-politiques locaux. Ce modèle est remanié, adapté et modifié au gré des conflits et jeux d’acteurs pour laisser place à des modes de gouvernance spécifiques à chacun des territoires. L’analyse de ces fermetures nous amène dans le même temps à interroger le passage de la « reconversion » à la « transition » des territoires, qui ne saurait se résumer à une simple évolution sémantique ni à un effet de mode. Si les deux reposent en effet sur des processus globaux redéfinissant en profondeur les systèmes territoriaux (Daviet, 2006, Chabrol, 2018), les objectifs, attentes et dynamiques de mobilisation des acteurs diffèrent.
Chronique de l’implantation gazière en Amazonie péruvienne : un processus aux territorialisations multiples
Nina Montes de Oca
Congrès du centenaire de l’Union Géographique Internationale (UGI), session « Amazonie, société et aménagement du territoire », 18-22 juillet, Paris, France (2022)
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C’est en Amazonie péruvienne, plus précisément dans le piémont andin cusqueño, qu’ont été découverts les gisements gaziers de Camisea dans les années 1980, à l’origine d’une profonde restructuration du système énergétique péruvien à partir des années 2000. Cette présentation se focalise sur les reconfigurations territoriales engendrées par l’exploitation gazière dans cette zone limitrophe de l’Amazonie péruvienne, dans le district d’Echarate de la région de Cusco, qui place le Pérou parmi les pays exportateurs d’hydrocarbures. Elle s’appuie sur un travail de recherche mené en doctorat entre 2015 et 2020 sur les effets territoriaux de la diffusion du gaz naturel au Pérou, pour rendre compte des processus de territorialisation en lien avec l’implantation gazière à Camisea. Ces activités gazières se sont greffées dans une région marquée par la présence de populations autochtones contactées ou non, et de missions religieuses. Dans ce contexte, nous verrons comment ces activités gazières renouvellent les modalités de gouvernance et entraînent des territorialisations successives. Dans les années 1980, des réserves communales sont ainsi créées avec le concours des ONG pour contrer les incursions liées à l’exploration gazière, puis les concessions gazières, attribuées à différentes entreprises transnationales, s’y superposent à partir des années 2000. Enfin, en 2016 la mobilisation du concept de territoire, au sens politique et administratif, par les populations autochtones a donné lieu à la création d’un nouveau district amazonien. Ces évolutions nous amènent à réfléchir sur les effets d’un grand projet extractif sur les territorialités amazoniennes. La présentation entend ainsi s’insérer dans l’axe dédié aux grands projets et à la gestion territoriale, afin de participer aux échanges sur des processus similaires observés dans d’autres régions de l’Amazonie.
Le gaz naturel, un « levier » pour l’avènement d’un « nouveau Pérou » ? Les contradictions d’un modèle énergétique péruvien en devenir
Nina Montes de Oca
Congrès du centenaire de l’Union Géographique Internationale (UGI), session « Géopolitique des ressources naturelles à l’heure de la transition socio-écologique », 18-22 juillet, Paris, France (2022)
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La découverte de ressources gazières dans les années 1980 à Camisea a redessiné les cartes du système énergétique péruvien, notamment depuis le démarrage de leur exploitation en 2004. À l’encontre d’un système gazier centré sur la capitale et les exportations, la mobilisation des populations du sud du pays à partir de 2011 a poussé l’État péruvien à s’engager dans une transition socio-écologique focalisée sur ces régions, en prônant une redistribution des ressources issues de l’exploitation gazière. La stratégie de l’État s’est ainsi traduite par la réalisation partielle d’un gazoduc orienté vers ces régions, et de programmes de diffusion du gaz naturel par le biais de réseaux urbains et la distribution d’artefacts énergétiques (cuisinières, bonbonnes). À partir de ma recherche en doctorat effectuée entre 2015 et 2020, ma présentation s’appuiera sur les données récoltées lors d’entretiens avec les acteurs de l’énergie, d’observations sur le terrain, et à travers l’analyse de la littérature grise. L’objectif est de montrer comment l’étude multi-scalaire de la mise en ressource et de la transition vers le gaz naturel au Pérou dévoile les contradictions et les tensions entre les acteurs de cette transformation du système énergétique. J’ai constaté que le gaz naturel y est tour-à-tour mobilisé comme un facteur de solvabilité et d’insertion au marché énergétique mondial, comme le moyen de solder une dette historique et sociale vers les régions du sud et, comme un « levier » permettant de faire advenir un « nouveau Pérou » (Humala, 2014) plus moderne et moins inégal. Néanmoins, en prônant la diffusion de l’accès à l’énergie, le discours étatique dominant contribue à consolider une dépendance nouvelle au sentier gazier, et à créer un « consensus sur les commodities » (Svampa, 2015), en passant sous silence les revendications et conflits constatés autour de l’exploitation et la diffusion de cette ressource à différentes échelles.
Impacts of public policy on the rebound effect of green heating services
Nhat-Anh Nguyen, Phu Nguyen-Van, Anne Stenger
Workshop “Sustainability, public action, and well-being”, July 18-19, Hanoi, Vietnam (2022)
Progress and implementation of ENERGON transversal project
DOI/URL: https://hal.science/hal-03789956
Sylvie Daviet, Nina Montes de Oca
International Symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, June 20-22, Nantes, France (2022)
HYDECO – Connections, disconnections and reconnections in socio-hydrosystems: does (in)visibility make the difference?
DOI/URL: https://hal.science/hal-03790260
Anne-Lise Boyer
International Symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, June 20-22, Nantes, France (2022)
Pluri-secular trajectory of the Upper Rhine fluvial hydrosystem through an interdisciplinary study of floodplain fine sediments
Cassandra Euzen, François Chabaux, Clément Artigue, Thierry Perrone, Frédérique Eyrolle, Gilles Rixhon, Frank Preusser, Dominique Badariotti, Laurent Schmitt
International Symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, June 20-22, Nantes, France (2022)
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Over the last two centuries, hydrosystems have been subjected to significant pressures like engineering works (correction, canalisation, dike and groynes building) and the contaminant releases from industries, urban areas, agriculture, transports. The fine sediments of the floodplains can be an excellent archive of past activities, but its understanding requires a fine interdisciplinary study integrating geomorphological (at different spatial scales), geochemical and geochronological approaches.
Our study focuses on the Upper Rhine between Kembs and Strasbourg, a fluvial section strongly altered by successive engineering works and by the establishment of industries in Basel-Mulhouse, the Fessenheim nuclear power plant, and the rejects of the Alsacian potassium mining upstream. The objective is to study and understand the geochemical variations in time (depending on the depth) and in the longitudinal dimension of the hydrosystem. This study relies on several areas selected with the help of old maps, topographic (Lidar) and limnimetric information and on a penetrometric campaign to spatialize the thickness of fine sediment deposits. Samples were collected from four pits and cores. The fine dating of the deposits is performed using short half-life radionuclides (137Cs, 210Pb) and luminescence methods. The evolution of the geochemical signal obtained by ICP-MS/AES has shown notable enrichments for certain chemical species for which we discuss the natural or anthropogenic origin.
Progress towards an international comparison of river sediment pollution: Key factors influencing metal concentrations along seven Western European Rivers (1945-2020)
André-Marie Dendievel, Cécile Grosbois, Sophie Ayrault, Olivier Evrard, Alexandra Coynel, Maxime Debret, Thomas Gardes, Cassandra Euzen, Laurent Schmitt, François Chabaux, Thierry Winiarski, Marcel Van der Perk, Brice Mourier
European Geoscience Union 2022 (EGU22), May 23-27, Vienna, Austria (2022)
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Since 60 years, a large amount of data has been acquired to survey river sediment quality, especially concerning regulatory trace metals such as Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn. Large-scale syntheses are still rare and show some limits to assess the effectiveness of public regulations and the river systems' resilience. Based on a sediment contamination database comprising more than 12,000 samples, we propose a first attempt to decipher spatio-temporal trends of metal contamination along seven major rivers in Western Europe (Garonne-Lot, Loire, Meuse Rhine, Rhone, Scheldt and Seine Rivers). Facing heterogeneous sampling and analytical methods on different sediment matrices (bed and flood deposits – BFD, suspended particulate matter – SPM, dated sediment cores – DSC), this work investigates the effect of analytical protocols, spatial and temporal factors on metal concentration trends. At a large scale, an increase in metal concentrations (especially for Cd, Pb and Zn) is reported along most of the investigated rivers. It appears closely related to major urban-industrial hotspots (Paris-Rouen corridor on the Seine River, Bonn-Duisburg corridor on the Rhine River, etc.) and to the geology of each watershed, both influencing the regional sediment quality. Former mining and metallurgical districts, generally located in crystalline areas, also caused high metal concentrations on the long term (Upper Loire River, Middle Meuse River, Lot River). A global decrease of metal concentrations is observed in all river sections since the 1960s-1970s onwards, in response to European and national regulations, and to socio-economical changes affecting urban-industrial areas. The high influence of the location of the samples along the rivers and the decade of sampling is confirmed by a Factor Analysis of Mixed Data (FAMD). Secondary factors such as the influence of the sediment matrix type (BFD, SPM and DSC) and the different digestion procedures prior to elemental analysis also explained significant differences for Cr, Cd, Cu, Pb, or Zn, although this can also be locally balanced by the substratum (i.e. for alkaline rivers). This approach points out the limitations of the available data, particularly regarding the need of regional geological backgrounds and the more systematic acquisition of ancillary data such as grain-size and TOC. It also provides critical clues to intercompare metal sediment pollution in rivers at large spatial and temporal scales worldwide.
Floodplain sediments to study the trajectory of an anthropized hydrosytem. Case of the Upper Rhine
Cassandra Euzen, Laurent Schmitt, Gilles Rixhon, Thierry Perrone, Frank Preusser, Frédérique Eyrolle, Dominique Badariotti, François Chabaux
Quaternaire13 (Q13), March 14-18, Strasbourg, France (2022)
Nucléaire, Cannabis, OGM… ces risques qui font débat dans l’opinion publique. Et si c’était une question de valeurs ?
DOI/URL: https://hal.science/hal-03475484
Ianis Chassang, Odile Rohmer, Bruno Chauvin
61ème Congrès National de la Société Française de Psychologie, 8-10 décembre, Tours, France (2021)
Vision and first actions of the SO-DRIIHM open science project
Emilie Lerigoleur, Ghita Amal, Fanny Arnaud, Pascal Dayre, Armelle Decaulne, Priscilla Duboz, Samuel Dunesme, Arnaud Jean-Charles, Iwan Le Berre, Mathieu Massaviol, Kristell Michel, Bertrand Morandi, Corinne Pardo, Jean-Claude Raynal, Grzegorz Skupinski, Marie-Laure Trémélo
International Symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, September 6-8, Toulouse, France (2021)
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Dans le cadre du mouvement international de la science ouverte, le projet ANR SO-DRIIHM traite de la structuration, du partage et de l’ouverture des données produites au sein d’un dispositif rassemblant treize observatoires (OHM) du CNRS-INEE : le Dispositif de Recherche Interdisciplinaire sur les Interactions Hommes-Milieux soutenu par l’ANR (LabEx DRIIHM 2012-2025). Le projet ANR SO-DRIIHM (octobre 2020 - mars 2023) est l'un des 25 lauréats de l'appel Flash science ouverte de l'ANR. L'objectif de la présente communication orale est de montrer les orientations stratégiques et les premières réalisations à la communauté scientifique du LabEx DRIIHM dans le cadre de son symposium international des 6-8 septembre 2021. Il s'agit également d'une opportunité de promotion de la science ouverte auprès d'un large public, en accord avec l'un des deux objectifs du projet. Dans un premier temps, le contexte international et français en matière de science ouverte est décrit, présentant notamment les dernières nouveautés comme le Second Plan National Science Ouverte (2021) du Ministère français de lʼEnseignement supérieur, de la Recherche et de lʼInnovation (MESRI) et le projet initié d'entrepôt de données national recherche.data.gouv.fr. Les principes FAIR et d'ouverture autant que possible des données de la recherche y sont également précisés. Dans une seconde partie, il s'agit d'expliquer les choix stratégiques choisis par le collectif SO-DRIIHM : construire un partenariat fort avec les entrepôts de données institutionnels et thématiques cibles, co-concevoir avec la communauté la future e-infrastructure comme un portail "aiguilleur de la science ouverte", offrir un accompagnement méthodologique et technique dans la FAIRisation des données dans le cadre de projets pilotes, etc. Dans une troisième et dernière partie, les premières réalisations sont présentées, à savoir les différentes actions de communication internes et externes, l'état d'avancement de l'accompagnement dans le cadre des projets pilotes, les premiers développements informatiques et premières maquettes dessinées de la future plateforme DATA-DRIIHM. La conclusion résume et ouvre sur les perspectives du projet avec un appel à volontaires pour de futurs bêta-tests pour ainsi rester au plus proche des attentes et besoins de la communauté.
Combining geochemistry with geochronology and hydromorphology to unravel massive human impacts in the Upper Rhine over the two last centuries
Cassandra Euzen, Laurent Schmitt, Valentin Chardon, Gilles Rixhon, Thierry Perrone, Frank Preusser, Dominique Badariotti, François Chabaux
Goldschmidt, July 4-9, virtual (2021)
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Assessing the effects of remediation measures to minimize impacts of human activities on the environment currently represents a major challenge for environmental scientists and policy-makers. Evaluating the effectiveness of measures undertaken in hydrosystems over the last decades to improve the chemical quality of river sediments is thus crucial. This, in turn, may strongly favour future efforts for ecological river restoration. Against this background, geochemical surveys are often based on a monitoring of the quality of both water and suspended matter at local measurement stations. However, similar approaches use dated sedimentary records, thereby offering the twofold advantage of (i) extending the temporal framework to past activities and (ii) considering several geomorphological units along and across the hydrosystem. This study focuses on a ~100 km long reach of the Upper Rhine hydrosystem, from Neuf-Brisach to Strasbourg (France). It aims at mapping the anthropogenic geochemical contamination recorded in fine sediments which deposited in response to several river engineering works. Fluvial deposition has varied both longitudinally in response to longitudinal adjustments and laterally because of the microtopography and historical infrastructures such as dikes. We thus first carried out an unprecedented hydromorphological reconstruction based on a planform study using ancient maps combined with information about the vertical evolution of the hydrosystem (flood record, water and groundwater levels, diachronic longitudinal profiles of the thalweg ...). Based on this large geohistorical database, five sediment pits were dug and sampled. The depth-age model for each profile is based on a combination of luminescence and radiocarbon dating completed by geomorphological and hydrological information. These geochronological results coupled to mineralogical, grain size and geochemical characterization of the samples, especially metal concentrations, provide an accurate image of the evolution of the Rhine’s sediment composition and quality over the last two centuries in the different geomorphological units. Results are also discussed in the light of the industrial development of the Rhine valley upstream of the studied reach. These results also allow discussing the hypothesis that paleo-channels cut by the Rhine’s regulation and filled by fine sediments are major pollution hotspots in the hydrosystem in which pollutants have accumulated over time.
Sediment dynamics and composition to characterize the two last centuries trajectory of human impact in the upper Rhine
Cassandra Euzen, Laurent Schmitt, Valentin Chardon, Gilles Rixhon, Thierry Perrone, Frank Preusser, Dominique Badariotti, François Chabaux
ContaSed2021, June 9-11-12, University of Bern, Switzerland (2021)
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Assessing the effects of remediation measures to minimize impacts of human activities on the environment currently represents a major challenge for environmental scientists and policy-makers. Evaluating the effectiveness of measures undertaken in hydrosystems over the last decades to improve the chemical quality of river sediments is thus crucial. This, in turn, may strongly favour future efforts for ecological river restoration. Against this background, geochemical surveys are often based on a monitoring of the quality of both water and suspended matter at local measurement stations. However, similar approaches use dated sedimentary records, thereby offering the twofold advantage of (i) extending the temporal framework to past activities and (ii) considering several geomorphological units along and across the hydrosystem. This study focusses a ~100 km long reach of the Upper Rhine fluvial hydrosystem, from Neuf-Brisach to Strasbourg. This reach has been heavily altered by (i) several engineering works and (ii) important industrial contaminant releases. In this context, this study aims at reconstructing the spatio-temporal evolution of the sediment deposits, as well as their mineralogical and chemical composition (metal concentrations). As sediment deposition varied longitudinally and laterally, the study consisted first in an unprecedent detailed diachronic hydromorphological analysis, based on old maps, diachronic thalweg longitudinal profiles, microtopography (LIDAR), historical infrastructures as dikes, surface water/groundwater levels, flood record, etc. On this basis, five sediment pits were dug and sampled. The sediment chemical composition is compared to grain size and mineralogy. In addition, accurate depth-age models for each pit, based on a combination of luminescence, radiochronometric, geomorphological and hydrological methods, open the discussion about the link between sediment deposition and composition, engineering works and industrial development of the Rhine valley upstream the studied reach. The results may also allow discussing the hypothesis that paleo-channels cut by the Rhine’s regulation and filled by fine sediments are major pollution hotspots in the hydrosystem in which pollutants have accumulated over time.
Designing robust DNA barcode libraries for metabarcoding of freshwater plants by integrating herbarium collections and contemporary floristic inventories
DOI/URL: https://tinyurl.com/24mjhrdr
Armando Espinosa Prieto, Laurent Hardion, Jean-Nicolas Beisel
1st DNAqua International Conference, March 9-11, virtual (2021)
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Aquatic environmental DNA (eDNA) studies have considerably taken off during the last 10 years, promptly establishing eDNA as a new approach to monitoring the ecological status of European surface waters. On the one hand due to the numerous biological methods based on aquatic species, on the other hand due to the development of group-specific primers that allowed discrimination between species or at least genera. Understandably, rapid achievements were made for animal groups that include a small number of species (fish, amphibians) whereas it is still in development for plants, due to the complexity of obtaining a universal barcode applicable to eDNA for the latter. Nonetheless, research in plant eDNA barcoding and metabarcoding is making significant progress, mainly expanding in the detection of plant species in freshwater ecosystems. With a multi-barcode eDNA metabarcoding approach in mind, we are preparing a plant DNA barcode reference library for our study area, the Northern Vosges Regional Natural Park. Drawing from this experience and supported by current publications, we focus on the strong connection between metabarcoding of plant eDNA and floristic inventories, local barcode libraries, and herbaria. Prior knowledge of species distribution and abundant genetic data are the key to increasing species detection through eDNA (Cordier et al. 2020). We ought to standardise this practice before eDNA metabarcoding of plants can cover large river basins and span through time. Following the consensus on a combination of barcodes for the plant kingdom, the most recurrent ones in freshwater eDNA studies include the plastid DNA trnL, matK, rbcL regions and the nrDNA internal transcribed spacers (ITS) although it is likely that new barcodes emerge from further research. To date, the selection of primers seems to be of utmost importance since they offer different properties based on the research question. Seminal efforts have focused on the development of species-specific assays based on tailor-made primers. These have demonstrated the reliability of eDNA to be used for monitoring the distribution of aquatic plant species. Today, three of the most common aquatic invaders, Elodea canadensis, Elodea nutalli and Hydrilla verticillata have now their own assays aiming to identify the earliest invasions (Gantz et al. 2018). On the contrary, “universal” primers, such as those from White et al. (1990) within the ITS, prove to be useful in metabarcoding studies where many plant species from differing families are involved (Coghlan et al. 2020). Despite the fast-moving research in aquatic plant eDNA, DNA barcode reference libraries still lack many species, hindering the progress of applying eDNA surveys to large river basins through metabarcoding. Such studies still rely heavily on building local genetic libraries which is extremely time consuming and require important taxonomic knowledge of species, encumbered by the polyphyly of aquatic plant groups.
Posters (13)
Les Observatoires Hommes-Milieux et le LabEx DRIIHM
Corinne Pardo, Anne-Lise Boyer, Dominique Badariotti, Carole Barthélémy, Jean-Philippe Bedell, Najat Birhy, Eduardo Ferreira da Silva, Damien Davy, Armelle Decaulne, Priscilla Duboz, Larry Fisher, Didier Galop, Fabien Hein, Pascal-Jean Lopez, Patrick Monfort, Yves Noack, Papa Ibnou Ndiaye, François-Michel Le Tourneau, Alejandro Salazar-Burrows
Journées scientifiques du PEPR OneWater - Eau Bien Commun, 10-12 juillet, Lyon, France (2023)
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Outils de promotion de l’interdisciplinarité, les Observatoires Hommes-Milieux (OHM) sont une construction de toutes les sciences de l’environnement. Leur objectif premier est d’observer des systèmes complexes affectés par des événements issus du Changement Global ou de l’anthropisation galopante, en étant attentif aux attentes de la société civile et ainsi éclairer au mieux, les décideurs politiques, économiques et les acteurs citoyens, dans leurs choix. Labellisé Laboratoire d’excellence par l’ANR en 2012, le Dispositif de Recherche sur les Interactions Hommes-Milieux (DRIIHM) fédère et coordonne les OHM. Renouvelé en 2020 pour 5 années, il finance des projets de recherches exploratoires, organise les transversalités et les transferts vers la société, œuvre à la valorisation des données et des résultats de recherche.
For a participative approach to a post-nuclear transition: methodology
Valentine Erné-Heintz, Eric Maire, Clémentine Marty, Lucie Taillard
Séminaire de Recherche UHA "Durabilité : transitions, risques, territoires", 6 juillet, Mulhouse, France (2023)
For a participative approach to a post-nuclear transition: methodology
Valentine Erné-Heintz, Eric Maire, Clémentine Marty, Lucie Taillard
International symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, June 5-7, Strasbourg, France (2023)
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In 2020, Fessenheim’s nuclear plant bordering the Rhine stopped functioning. Its closure raises questions as to the territory’s nuclearized identity. In 2019, a steering committee, specially created by the French Government, gathered different actors for the writing of a ‘Projet d’Avenir du Territoire’ (PAT) [Territory’s future Project]. The major aim was to make the territory as an example in terms of lower-carbon innovation. The project defines four major points – including cross-border mobility and energetic transition – and three relevant scales to get the reconversion projects. However, their executions take time and failed to garner unanimous support.
The research project MEPADE aims to experiment with new participatory methods so as to understand how the territory is lived in and perceived by its population. We will therefore be asking ourselves the following question: how are we to diagnose the issues of a nuclearized territory in transition through participatory methods?
Two tools are set up for this purpose:
- A diagnosis of the perceived stakes within the territory through mapping interviews (PBRM - Perception Based Regional Mapping
- A gathering of the future’s representations of the territory through serious games
Life Cycle assessment of very low-level radioactive waste from decommissioning of the Fessenheim nuclear power plant: Case of the very low-level radioactive waste logistics and hypothetical recycling
Ahmed Sahel, Zineb Guendouz, Michal Kozderka, Gaetana Quaranta
International symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, June 5-7, Strasbourg, France (2023)
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Previous study on decommissioning of the Fessenheim Nuclear Power Plant has revealed unknown, yet potentially important environmental impacts of Very Low-Level Radioactive Waste (VLLW). In consequence, the human-environment observatory (OHM) of Fessenheim supports the ACYVI-TREFA project, which aims to characterize and evaluate the environmental impacts of the VLLW treatment and its conceivable alternatives.
As the previous study suggested, a large part of the environmental impacts are potentially due to the VLLW. Even if it only represents 3% of the waste from the Fessenheim power plant decommissioning, it could be responsible for almost half of the whole waste treatment’s environmental impacts.
Moreover, evolution of French laws concerning valorization of the VLLW is being currently discussed. Therefore, the second objective of this study is to provide knowledge on the environmental impacts of the VLLW treatment and eventual possibilities of their recycling.
We use the Lifecycle Assessment (LCA) method to characterize and evaluate the VLLW’s environmental impacts. The study is organized into two main scenarios: The first one involves the current method of treatment of the VLLW. (Landfill in the CIRES site of ANDRA) The second scenario represents hypothetical recycling and decontamination of VLLW in a local techno-center.
The poster will provide the characterization, first quantitative results and interpretation of the eventual recycling of the VLLW.
Life Cycle assessment of very low-level radioactive waste from decommissioning of the Fessenheim nuclear power plant: Case of the very low-level radioactive waste treatment
Zineb Guendouz, Ahmed Sahel, Michal Kozderka, Gaetana Quaranta
International symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, June 5-7, Strasbourg, France (2023)
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The decommissioning of French nuclear power plants is expected to generate a large amounts of very low-level radioactive waste (VLLW), which present significant environmental challenges. Although some countries have implemented recycling and reuse of some materials, the reuse of VLLWs remains prohibited in France. This is a serious challenge, as it is expected that the French waste disposal center will be saturated by 2028 and that the construction of another facility is required.
So far, few life cycle assessments of decommissioning nuclear power plants have been conducted. A life cycle assessment on very low-level waste will help to support decision policy on environmental management of radioactive waste. Our research will address this need by focusing on VLLW storage centers and developing waste disposal models. To illustrate the applicability of our approach, we will conduct a case study focusing on VLLW generated from the decommissioning of the Fessenheim Nuclear Power Plant, and its storage at the Andra facility known as Les CIRES. The model will help to quantify the environmental impact of storage centers, including their impact on air, water and soil quality, greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption. The study provides valuable insights into the environmental performance of the current storage center and helps identify area of improvement and recycling opportunities.
Overall, this study will contribute to supporting decision-making on VLLW environmental management, which is essential to the sustainable development of France's nuclear power industry and to global efforts to develop sustainable nuclear waste management strategies.
Fluvial sediment composition to reconstruct the trajectory of artificialized fluvial hydrosystems, case of the Upper Rhine (Rhinau island)
CassandraEuzen, Laurent Schmitt, Gilles Rixhon, Frank Preusser, Frédérique Eyrolle, Thierry Perrone, Dominique Badariotti, François Chabaux
International symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, June 5-7, Strasbourg, France (2023)
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During the last two hundred years, fluvial hydrosystems have been impacted by unprecedented engineering works, e.g., correction, canalization, as well as contaminant releases notably by industries, urban areas and agriculture. Knowing the trajectory of the chemical composition of water and fine sediments in rivers is essential for assessing the extent of contamination and the effects of environmental regulations enacted to combat water pollution. Geochemical analysis of well-dated fine sediments deposited in floodplains may allow this reconstruction, as most contaminants, including metals, bind to fine particles. Characterizing such deposits requires and interdisciplinary approach coupling geomorphological, geochemical and geochronological approaches. Combining planimetric (old maps) and hydrological information with dating methods (IRSL single grain, 137Cs, 210Pbxs) provides a robust sedimentary record. Major and trace elements analysis in the sediments show enrichments of metals (e.g., Pb, Zn, Cu), peaking around 1970s/80s. Since then, there has been a gradual decrease, probably as a result of the evolution of human activities in the upstream catchment and regulations aimed at reducing industrial and urban metal releases into the Rhine. This Rhine example illustrates the relevance of interdisciplinary studies of fluvial sedimentary archives to assess the impacts of human activities on large rivers over time, especially concerning the trajectory of metal pollution.
Exploring the multi-faceted potential of luminescence profiling via the portable reader in various fluvial depositional systems (NE France)
DOI/URL: https://doi.org/10.5194/icg2022-569
Gilles Rixhon, C. Begorre, Cassandra Euzen, C. Fuchs, T. Jautzy, J. Laible, Laurent Schmitt
10th international conference on geomorphology (ICG), Sept 12-16, Coimbra, Portugal (2022)
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Along with the development of “classical” optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating, portable luminescence readers have been increasingly employed in a wide breadth of geomorphological settings over the last decade. Portable measurements of bulk samples along depth profiles yield infra-red and optically stimulated luminescence net intensities (IRSL/OSL). The signal build-up depends on (i) the burial duration of the sediment, (ii) the dose rate, (iii) the inherited dose at time of burial, (iv) the mineral composition and (v) the luminescence sensitivity of the minerals. In fluvial landscapes, however, the handful of existing case studies mostly focused on the sole identification of alluvium’s unconformities via luminescence profiling. We argue here that this approach shall go beyond the mere one- (or sometimes two-) dimensional sedimentary screening and steer towards the production of three-dimensional chronostratigraphical information. This study presents the outcomes of a luminescence-profiling approach performed in a wide array of fluvial depositional systems located in the Upper Rhine Graben and the adjacent Vosges Mountains (NE France). They include: (i) modern and historical overbank fines from the main stem (Rhine) and its tributaries (Bruche and Sauer Rivers); (ii) palaeomeanders and swale-and-ridge topography (Bruche); (iii) Holocene terrace deposits (Bruche); (iv) fluvio-glacial deposits (probably) from the Last Glacial Maximum (Cleurie Valley). We thus explore the ability of the reader to measure signals of varying intensities in different morpho-sedimentary units of clearly distinct ages. The results globally show: (i) a consistent pattern of downward increasing OSL/IRSL signal intensities, although some sharp contrasts (i.e., shifts of one order of magnitude in signal intensities) in some sequences could be identified (e.g., Rhine); (ii) a larger scatter of OSL/IRSL signal intensities in the sandy fraction than in the silty fraction, probably reflecting the influence of grain size on the signal accumulation (requiring further investigation); (iii) the potential of the portable reader as a rapid and efficient tool for tracing historical overbank fine deposition in floodplains.
Pluri-secular trajectory of the Upper Rhine fluvial hydrosystem through an interdisciplinary study of floodplain fine sediments
Cassandra Euzen, François Chabaux, Clément Artigue, Thierry Perrone, Frédérique Eyrolle, Gilles Rixhon, Frank Preusser, Dominique Badariotti, Laurent Schmitt
International Symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, June 20-22, Nantes, France (2022)
Prospective life cycle assessment of the decommissioning of the Fessenheim nuclear power plant
Mehdi Iguider, Marc Allemann, Haldan Koffi, Maria Boltoeva, Michal Kozderka, Gaetana Quaranta
International Symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, June 20-22, Nantes, France (2022)
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In February and June 2020, the Fessenheim NPP respectively went through the shutdown of its first and second reactors. The question that now arises is whether the dismantling of the NPP will be significant in terms of water pollution and global warming.
The PostAtomVie project consists in evaluating the environmental impacts during the last phase of the life of the Fessenheim NPP, in other words during the decommissioning phase of the plant in order to provide political decision-making assistance in terms of territorial environmental management and management of certain wastes. The system studied breaks down into three phases: dismantling, decontamination and demolition. It is understood that the technical operations of these three phases succeed one another, are often separated by upkeeping and maintenance phases and can be spread over periods ranging from 5 to 40 years, which implies a share of prospective modeling.
The development of the database was the starting point for the modeling of the impacts. It brings together the different quantities of radioactive and conventional waste that will be handled during dismantling as well as the distances and transport of radioactive waste to their storage locations. The sources of the data used come from EDF (Electricité de France) reports, studies of previous dismantling. The data concerning waste comes from a report by ANDRA (National Agency for Radioactive Waste Management). The second point of the modeling is the evaluation, at each stage of the system, of the three most important impact categories: namely global warming, the use of non-renewable energy and the respiratory effects linked to compounds inorganic. The LCA calculation method used is Impact 2002+.
Geomorphology, geochemistry and geochronology to characterize the trajectory of an anthropized hydrosystem from the 19th century to today. Case of the Upper Rhine.
Cassandra Euzen, Laurent Schmitt, Valentin Chardon, Gilles Rixhon, Thierry Perrone, Frank Preusser, Dominique Badariotti, François Chabaux
Mid-European Geomorphology Meeting 2021 (MGM2021), November 6-10, Munich, Germany (2021)
Geomorphology and geochemistry to assess human impacts on the Upper Rhine over the last centuries
DOI/URL: https://hal.science/hal-03356914
Cassandra Euzen, Laurent Schmitt, Gilles Rixhon, Thierry Perrone, Frank Preusser, Dominique Badariotti, François Chabaux
International Symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, September 6-8, Toulouse, France (2021)
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As hydrosystems are particularly sensitive to human activities, it is crucial to assess the evolution of human impacts as well as the effects of some restoration actions implemented during the last decades. This study focuses on the section of the Upper Rhine between Neuf-Brisach and Strasbourg. It aims at mapping the evolution of the geochemical signal recorded in the fine sediments deposited in response to several river-engineering works. As fluvial deposits vary both spatially and temporally, the selection of coring sites is based on an unprecedented hydromorphological reconstruction, combining a planform study using former maps with data related to the vertical dynamics of the hydrosystem. Each core is dated thanks to a set of cartographic and hydrological information, combined with luminescence, 137Cs and radiocarbon. The geochemical, mineralogical and grain-size characterization of these dated archives provides an accurate picture of the spatial evolution of the composition and quality of the Rhine sediments over the last 200 years. Results are discussed according to the evolution of human activities in the catchment. They also allow discussing the hypothesis that paleo-channels cut by the regulation works and filled by fine sediments are major pollution hotspots in the hydrosystem.
Study of the fate of chemical elements in the Rhine ecosystem: upstream and downstream of the Fessenheim nuclear power plant (NPP)
Axelle Genty, Maria Boltoeva, Gaetana Quaranta
International Symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, September 6-8, Toulouse, France (2021)
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The first and second reactors of the Fessenheim Nuclear Power Plant were shut down in February and June 2020, respectively. The idea of establishing an environmental state T0 after the closure of the Fessenheim plant arose with a view to a territorial upgrading. In this context, the issue of aquatic ecotoxicity has become relevant. The fate and effects of certain trace metals as well as tritium must therefore be quantified to determine aquatic ecotoxicity. The first step of this study is based on the fate of certain trace metals (Al, Cr, Fe) and tritium (3H) in the GCA and the Rhine river over a total distance of 80 km upstream and downstream of the Fessenheim plant. Monitoring these chemical elements from 2018 to 2021 allows us to reflect on the contribution of the Fessenheim plant to aquatic pollution. In June 2018, it had an influence on the Al concentration in the GCA (2600 µg / L at its discharge point), probably linked to a phenomenon of corrosion of the circuits present in industrial installation. Enrichment factor (EF) calculations for 56Fe and 52Cr, for 2018, June 2020, Oct 2020 and, March 2021, showed that the shutdown of the nuclear plant reduced the 52Cr contamination. On the other hand, the EF results for the 56Fe do not show a significant impact of the plant. However, EDF announces up to 2180 µg / L of iron at the discharge point in June 2018, so it is impossible to say that the Fessenheim plant is not participating in this pollution. Moreover, there is a significant dilution factor generated by the high river flow. There may be effects of low doses here. The results concerning tritium 3H, an activation product characteristic of nuclear power plants, showed that the Fessenheim plant had a low contribution to this pollution which could be generated by Swiss watchmakers and hospitals.
What is the place of Fessenheim nuclear power plant in the global industrial emissions in the Grand Canal d’Alsace?
DOI/URL: https://tinyurl.com/4m7s366p
Caline Ly Keng, Frédérique Berrod, François Chabaux, Dominique Badariotti
International Symposium of LabEx DRIIHM, October 7-9, Lyon, France (2019)
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The construction of Fessenheim nuclear power station (operating since 1977) on the Rhine was arised from the presence of a sufficient river flow which avoids building a cooling tower for the nuclear plant. The study consists in comparing the Fessenheim nuclear plant emissions in the Grand Canal d’Alsace to other industries’ emissions (Schiff, 2017) that are located between Basel to Vogelgrun. The effluents from industries may either be treated in urban waste water treatment plant, on-site of the industry, or within an independently operated sewage treatment plant before being release to the water body (EEA, 2019). In all cases, industrial effluents must be treated and regulated (Djelal, 2008) before being released into the Rhine river. In general, the released quantities of controlled pollutants by industries have reduced over time, however it did not prevent the discover of “new substances” in the Rhine river (CIPR, 2019). Therefore, it is justified to also question factors that may have influenced the reduction of Fessenheim nuclear plants pollutants discharged, knowing that the releases are below the limit values. The aim of the study on the evolution of industrial historical releases is to have a better understanding of the impact of Fessenheim nuclear plant on the Rhine ecosystem and the factors that contributed to reduce its impact.