Water's management in coastal area
Water management at the heart of coastal area challenges
Due to a high concentration of human and maritime activities, coastal areas are exposed to the most common marine challenges, especially in the Mediterranean due to geographic, economic,
political, biological and energy features.
A global approach for a segmented area of operation
A global approach to water management in the coastal area has lead to breaking down management problems as follows :
- Mastering pollution risks linked to human activities
- Coastal water quality for vital economic activities
- Management of different types of resources and needs
- Respect of the environment in infrastructure development
- The impact of climate changes on the coastal area (coastal erosion).
Technological innovation faced to challenges
The keys to innovation are based on :
- Scientific research in marine biology and chemistry
- Qualification of « ecological standards » for the marine coastal areas
- Fresh water management (natural and desalinated)
- Processing of sediments and macro-waste treatment.
Strategic challenges include :
- Limit negative impacts on resources to preserve them in quality and quantity
- Management optimisation between resources and needs
- Mastery of multiple economic activities on the coast.
Market potentials proportional to economic and ecological ambitions
The market for water management is certain to expand seeing that coastal underground water resources are currently overexploited by excessive urbanism.
The desalinisation market is also experiencing strong growth due to increasing rarity of fresh water resources on the coast. Furthermore, coastal water quality requirements are increasingly stricter as a result of new regulatory standards and the development of tourism.
Referent territorial industrialists and scientists
Pôle Mer PACA represents a dozen businesses committed to water management in coastal areas including Véolia, Suez, world leaders and specialized engineering offices : EGIS, BRL, Acri, Eramm, G2C-Environnement…The PACA region houses several research laboratories specialized in the monitoring and enhancement of coastal resources: Ifremer, Oceanologic Centre of Marseille, Oceanographic Observatory of Villefranche-sur-Mer, BRGM, Cerege…
