At a glance
Contributing to the protection of groundwater resources in response to the challenges of climate change
Almost 70% of our drinking water comes from underground aquifers. However, these resources are greatly affected by the growing demand on water supplies and the increasing impact of climate change on the natural recharge of aquifers. Pressure on water resources and conflicts over uses may therefore become more common in certain regions.
BRGM studies and continuously monitors large water-body systems across France, in terms of the availability and quality of the resources, notably through the French piezometric network, and makes this data available to the public. It also has state-of-the-art tools and facilities for carrying out analyses and experiments, as well as for building predictive models of how aquifers function and the quality of their water resources, to help those responsible protect them and implement remedial actions when necessary.
Finally, BRGM also develops governance tools taking into account socio-economic data in order to contribute to the more sustainable management of groundwater bodies, either at regional level or for individual water basins.
In limestone regions, water flows are concentrated in karstic networks that can form real underground rivers. Here, the Jonquilles River has carved its path through the Jurassic limestone of the north-eastern edge of the Aquitaine Basin (Corrèze, 2018).
© BRGM - Silvain Yart
Strategic challenges
Protecting groundwater resources
Groundwater resources are essential for drinking water supplies but also for satisfying the needs of the agricultural sector. Water resources are under increasing pressure due to climate change and the growing demand for different uses in society.
Groundwater resources may be over-exploited in relation to their capacities, at local or regional level. As demand outstrips aquifer recharge, excessive abstraction can lead to phenomena such as saline intrusions in coastal regions, subsidence (sinkholes), water quality problems and the drying up of watercourses, with impacts on the related ecosystems, some of which may be irreversible.
At the same time, human activities are having a growing impact on the quality of water resources. Indeed, resources may be polluted by agricultural activities (nitrates and pesticides), industry (organic pollutants, heavy metals and nanoparticles) or domestic wastewater, which may contain emerging pollutants, antibiotic-resistant bacteria and viruses, drug residues, etc.
Finally, climate change will have a much more dramatic impact on coastal areas, such as the Mediterranean basin, and in developing countries.
GPS referencing of a piezometer (instrumentation for monitoring and analysing water quality) located in the infiltration basin of the controlled aquifer-recharge system.
© BRGM
Ambition
Optimise the availability of water resources and protect water quality
As joint manager of the "OneWater – Water as a common good PEPR" (French priority research and equipment programme) and the French government's delegated Project Manager for the management of the national piezometric network, BRGM is the leading French authority in the field of groundwater management, both in terms of research and of support for public policy-making.
It helps to monitor or restore the accessibility and availability of groundwater, for all uses and environments, while also anticipating how to adapt aquifers and groundwater hydrosystems to the various effects of climate change.
BRGM's work is totally aligned with the objectives of the French national Water Plan launched in 2023 and contributes to several associated missions, such as:
- Optimising the availability of water resources (for example through the controlled recharge of aquifers),
- Protecting water quality (health and hygiene management plan for water catchment points, development of nature-based solutions, etc.),
- Developing research and innovation across the entire water-management value chain, in order to take innovation to new levels (OneWater priority research and equipment programme, Water4All European Partnership).
BRGM's added value
- Ability to carry out multi-disciplinary studies, build models, develop socio-economic approaches and technologies in order to monitor and manage the water cycle, and specifically groundwater resources.
- Management of the national piezometric network and national groundwater databases.
- Systematic integration of quality and quantity considerations in projects covering the entire value chain (from R&D to audits) from data acquisition to digital modelling.
What kind of partnership initiatives?
Reducing the impact of industrial activities on groundwater
- Identifying emerging contaminants.
- Monitoring and modelling transfer systems.
- Quantifying the availability of water resources.
Ensuring sustainable access to sufficient groundwater supplies for activities that require this resource
- Developing methods and tools for modelling the behaviour of water resources subject to natural and anthropogenic constraints (pumping/recharge).
Managing how water resources are shared and the efficiency of water abstraction
- Supporting and analysing water-resource management and/or exploitation strategies.
- Acceptability.
Anticipating the impacts of climate change on the demand for water resources
- Deploying critical analysis methods and developing quantitative tools for taking steps to adapt to the effects of climate change, in order to measure the availability of water resources.
