The Tour du Valat Newsletter n°53 | July 2026 | | | | | MAELIA-Delta: a new tool to explore the future of the Camargue and to support water management in a region under pressure | | The Rhône Delta is a complex socio-ecosystem where water shapes everything: landscapes, biodiversity, human activities, and the ecosystem services on which society depends. Agriculture, natural habitats, and water use constantly interact within a living, ever-evolving system. | | | | | Yet, in a context of global change, this delicate balance is now under severe pressure. Anthropogenic factors (water management choices in agricultural and natural areas, crop types) and climatic factors (prolonged droughts, intense rainfalls, rising sea levels) directly influence the hydro-salinity balance, a key parameter that determines the dynamics of habitats and species, of human activities and of related ecosystem services. In 2022, to better understand these complex interactions, the Tour du Valat and INRAE started developing the innovative application MAELIA-Delta. It simulates the relationships between agriculture, water management, biodiversity, and ecosystem services in delta environments, whilst incorporating the central role played by hydro-salinity dynamics. In addition to being a fundamental research project, this tool is designed to support concrete decision-making. It will enable stakeholders to collectively explore different water management scenarios and assess their consequences, to inform group decisions concerning major challenges such as climate change and rising energy costs. | | THREE QUESTIONS FOR ... Olivier Thérond | | Olivier Thérond, an agronomist with a passion for modelling, is the development coordinator for the MAELIA platform. He answers our questions about the future scientific challenges facing MAELIA-Delta, the prospects for implementing the model in other regions, and the importance of engaging with local actors in order to design a decision-support tool that is as closely aligned as possible with the realities of the Camargue. | | | | | The Tour du Valat 2025 activity report is online! | | As every year, the Tour du Valat is publishing its activity report, illustrated with magnificent pictures and presenting our main achievements over the past year. It is the fruit of numerous collaborations with our partners, whether institutional, scientific, technical or financial. | | | | | Waterbird management in the Camargue discussed at a meeting between hunters, protected area managers and scientific partners | | Every year since 2007, the Tour du Valat and the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB) have brought together stakeholders from the hunting sector, protected area management and research in the Camargue for a half-day of discussions on hunting issues and the management of waterbird populations in the Camargue. Here's a look back at this meeting, which took place on 5 May, and was attended by over 75 participants. | | | | | A new field campaign to assess the carbon sequestration potential of the Camargue’s wetlands | | As part of the Wetland4Change project, a field campaign was carried out in the Camargue from 9 to 13 March 2026, with the aim of improving the assessment of wetlands’ capacity to sequester carbon and contribute to climate change mitigation.
The aim is to better quantify both carbon stocks and greenhouse gas fluxes, in order to understand the role of wetlands as Nature-based Solutions. | | | | | Wetlands: Mediterranean civil society rallies in Tunis | | The final meeting of the ‘Civil Society Organisations and Wetlands’ project brought together fourteen partners from ten Mediterranean countries, in Tunis, from 23 to 26 March. The meeting provided an opportunity to review the progress and achievements of three and a half years of regional initiatives (training courses, waterbird counts, Red Alerts, etc.) aimed at strengthening the role of the participating organisations in the protection of wetlands. | | | | | From Corsica to Sardinia: gaining a better understanding of subsurface nitrogen and phosphorus flows | | In May 2026, Columba Martinez Espinosa, a research engineer with the Flux Admissibles (FA) mission – led by the Tour du Valat, Ifremer and the Rhône-Méditerranée-Corse Water Agency – took part in two complementary key events in Corsica and Sardinia. A training course in hydrogeology in Corte, followed by the International Nitrogen Workshop in Sassari, enabled her to both strengthen the technical skills required by the Mission and consolidate her connections with the scientific community working on nitrogen fluxes across the Mediterranean, in collaboration with agricultural stakeholders, researchers and European decision-makers. | | | | | Lake Chad: New scientific study reveals one of Africa’s largest concentrations of waterbirds | | The new scientific study, “Monitoring major biodiversity stronghold in war zones: model predicts Lake Chad remains Africa’s most important wetland for waterbirds”, published in PNAS, estimates that Lake Chad supports nearly 2.5 million waterbirds, making it one of the most important wetlands for birdlife in Africa. Conducted in a region affected by insecurity, the research also suggests that some conflict zones may unexpectedly serve as refuges for biodiversity. | | | | | Delta: a sound immersion in the Camargue with the artist Verena Paravel | | At the beginning of the year, the Tour du Valat was delighted to welcome the artist and filmmaker Verena Paravel as part of her research and creative project, Cosmofonia. This residency involved discussions and field recordings in the heart of the Camargue wetlands, in close collaboration with the Tour du Valat’s scientific teams. This immersion gave rise to Delta, a film currently on display at LUMA Arles until 31 March 2027. | | | | | Advocacy: when the acceleration of projects puts wetlands under pressure | | From major infrastructure projects in the Camargue to legislative developments in France and Europe, a number of recent decisions have raised concerns about the priority given to environmental issues in policies. For the Tour du Valat, these debates highlight the importance of fully taking into account the services provided by wetlands, as well as available scientific knowledge, before any decision that could have long-lasting impacts on these ecosystems. | | | | | In the Camargue, the temporary ponds created over 150 years ago are still not entirely similar to natural ponds In the Camargue, many natural ponds have disappeared or have been severely degraded over the last two centuries, whilst others have been created by chance or to compensate for the widespread destruction of wetlands. But do these artificial ponds, over time, manage to regain the characteristics of natural ponds? This is the question a team from the Tour du Valat has sought to answer by comparing the vegetation of ponds created at different times with a set of natural reference ponds. | | | | | Climatic and trophic drivers control long-term phytoplankton temporal trends in coastal lagoons Recent studies conducted in Corsican coastal lagoons show how phytoplankton dynamics evolve over the long term and highlight the joint - yet hierarchical - role of nutrient inputs and climatic conditions. | | | | | New data on European coastal wetlands to help achieve restoration policy objectives A new study, carried out as part of the Horizon Europe RESTORE4Cs project, offers a unique spatialised dataset that links three dimensions: habitats, ecosystem services provided to communities, and human activities, including the pressures these exert on ecosystems. | | | | | Protected area managers across Europe are adapting to climate change New research shows how climate change is reshaping protected area management, though more funding and scientific knowledge are needed to facilitate the process. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Tour du Valat Fondation Research Institute for Mediterranean Wetlands Conservation Visit our website www.tourduvalat.org | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Editorial committee : J. Jalbert, R. Billé, B. Guénebeaud, C. Hermeloup et G. Ollivier. They contributed : N. Begue, O. Boutron, N. Choquier, E. Gaget, A. Gazaix, A. Guelmami, A. Marquis-Soria, C. Martinez-Espinosa, A. Moulin, G. Ollivier, O. Thérond, E. Tuaillon Photos and illustrations credits : E. Laurent (banner), E. Laurent, O. Thérond, Tour du Valat, M. Ronse, C. Hermeloup, C. Martinez Espinosa, J. Dias / Wings for Conservation, Victor & Simon / Grégoire d'Ablon, A. Arnaud, Agence Beewine/Tour du Valat, H. Fontes, S. Leroy, RESTORE4Cs, Giorgio Zavattoni, T. Blanchon - photo & Tour du Valat (banner Adopt a flamingo). All rights reserved © Tour du Valat Fondation, 2026 | | | |
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