Website: www.hydrosciences.org
HydroSciences Montpellier is a joint laboratory depending of Montpellier University, IRD, CNRS and IMT Mines Alès. It gathers some 150 researchers and teaching staff. The main objective of HSM is to quantify and predict how climate change and human activities affect water resources in the Mediterranean and tropical regions. In particular, HSM focuses its research on (1) studying how human activities affect the behavior of organic and inorganic contaminants, and pathogens, bacteria with determining how the transformations of contaminants, the adaptation and emergence of pathogens impact environmental resources and further human health, (2) understanding how climate change affects the regional water balance between natural resources and economic demand using integrated modeling methods, (3) understanding eco-hydrological processes between land, vegetation and atmosphere in semi-arid ecosystems of the Western Africa and Mediterranean countries and (4) characterizing and modeling water transfers in heterogeneous aquifers (karst systems, fissured rocks, sedimentary basins). The team “Emerging Contaminants” of HSM (8 permanent scientific staff + 1 technician + 1 secretary + around 10 post-doc/PhD) possesses a high level of expertise in 1) risks assessment and management related to the occurrence of emerging contaminants (chemicals and pathogens) in the water cycle as well as in 2) the reduction of contamination at source by developing advanced oxidation processes and natural based systems. UM-HSM will bring its expertise in phytoremediation for water treatment and in the field of decentralized wastewater treatment and reuse particularly for irrigation in agriculture. It has also strong skills in (bio)analytical methodologies (mainly mass spectrometry) for the determination of emerging contaminants in different environmental matrices.
UM-HSM is leader of WP1 and involved in WP2, WP4 and WP6
Key personnel involved
Serge Chiron
Research Director.
Expertise: Environmental chemistry, 80 scientific papers, h-index = 36. He has a solid leadership track record to be put to the service of Safe
Andrés Sauvêtre
Permanent Lecturer.
Expertise: He obtained a Ph.D in plant biology and biotechnology. His research focuses on the use of nature-based solutions for remediation of polluted water with a strong emphasis on uptake and metabolism of emerging contaminants in plants and their associated microbiota.
Roukaya Al Haj Ishak Al Ali
Post-doctoral researcher.
Expertise: she holds a Ph.D. in environmental and analytical chemistry. Her research is dedicated to exploring the contamination of aquatic environments by organic pollutants and examining their effects on bacterial virulence.