Transit boosting of trans-Channel katabatic winds by depressions associated with west European storms tracks: impact on Pleistocene loess deposits.

Onshore and offshore sedimentological, geochemical, geomorphological, paleontological and geochronological studies of loess deposits located under and around the English Channel revealed that they were transported by katabatic winds generated by the British-Irish Ice Sheet. Katabatic winds, which are low-altitude wind flows, were able to jump over the low southern British hills but were stopped by the higher Brittany and Normandy hills. This regional topography is interrupted by a north-south corridor linking the northern and southern shores of Brittany where loess propagated down to the mouth of Loire River. This long transit shows that the total distance travelled by the katabatic wind was around 750 kilometres, which represents an unusual distance for the propagation of this wind under continental conditions. Strong similarities with Antarctica and Greenland, where well documented cases of katabatic winds are known, show that the transit of the trans-Channel katabatic winds were strongly enhanced by the seasonal drift of storms propagating in an eastward direction along the axis of the English Channel. This increasing strength of the North-South katabatic flux was probably at the origin of the transport of loess particles down to the mouth of Loire River.

Determining the Regional Geochemical Background for Dissolved Trace Metals and Metalloids in Stream Waters: Protocol, Results and Limitations–The Upper Loire River Basin (France)

To avoid the improper disqualification of a watershed for which the water–rock interaction (WRI) may produce trace element concentrations exceeding established guidelines, it is of the utmost importance to properly establish natural geochemical backgrounds. Using the example of the crystalline Upper Loire River Basin, we are proposing a methodology based on the selection and chemical characterization of water and sediment samples from 10 monolithologic watersheds supposedly lowly impacted by anthropogenic inputs. We collected water samples from each watershed’s spring down to its outlet and measured dissolved major, minor and selected trace elements (Al, As, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cs, Cu, La, Ni, Pb, U, V and Zn) at low- and high-water stages. Results show that the chemical signature of the stream waters is controlled by mineral weatherability rather than by the available rock stock. As a result, the variability in dissolved metal concentrations between the principal lithologies is similar to that observed within each of them. While some elements mostly result from WRI, others clearly identify high inputs from topsoil leaching. Comparison with published data evidences the need to subdivide studied watersheds into distinct sectors, according to the distance from the spring, in order to define reliable natural backgrounds.

Aquatic invasive alien rodents in Western France: Where do we stand today after decades of control?

Two aquatic invasive alien rodents, the coypu (Myocastor coypus) and muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus), have taken over a significant amount of wetlands in France. Pays de la Loire is an administrative region of about 32 000 km2 in the Western France with 6.3% of its area in wetlands (excluding the Loire River). Populations of coypus and muskrats are established and a permanent control programme has been set to reduce their impacts. The control plan is based on few professional trappers and many volunteers which makes this programme unique compared to other programme relying on professionals only. The aim of this study is to analyse the temporal and spatial dynamics of coypu and muskrat captures during the last 10 years to evaluate their effectiveness. The number of rodents removed per year increased by 50% in 10 years and reached about 288 000 individuals in 2016 with about 80% of them being coypus. During the same time length, the number of trappers involved in the programme also increased by 50% to reach 3 000 people in 2016. Although the raise of coypus and muskrats trapped can possibly be explained by an increase of the number of trappers, the number of coypus removed per trapper per year increased by 22%. Despite the outstanding number of individuals removed per year, our results suggest that the programme does not limit the population dynamics of coypus. Finally, since 2017, the number of data gathered from municipalities decreased, as did the total number of individuals trapped. Indeed, although rewards are crucial to recruit new volunteers, subsidies from local and regional authorities are declining. Decision makers and financers should be encouraged to fund this programme from the perspectives of the direct or indirect costs related to the presence of aquatic invasive alien rodents in wetlands.

Temporal and spatial dynamic of suspended sediments fluxes and sources and morphological evolution of the bed in the middle Loire river

<p>The middle Loire riverbed, after its confluence with Allier, is characterised by a morphology of alternate bars more or less vegetated and possesses riverbank flood protections. The suspended particulate matter (SPM) fluxes are therefore originated from these two catchment areas that drain the eastern and southern parts of the Massif Central. The temporal dynamics of the SPM fluxes are very variable, both on an interannual scale and on the scale of a flood event. Furthermore, SPM fluxes also present high spatial heterogeneities as they are governed by complex processes of production (erosion) and transfer (storage/remobilisation). The Loire river plays an important role in supporting the French energy production by providing cooling water to several Nuclear Power Plants (NPP). However, the cooling systems of the NPPs on the middle Loire are exposed to the risk of silting. In order to ensure a safe management of water intakes and prevent the industrial risks arising from sediment transport, it is therefore imperative to understand the spatio-temporal dynamic of sediment production and transfer.</p><p>In this context, the objective of this thesis work is to provide keys to improve sediment management of the river between the two NPPs of Belleville and Dampierre. In a first place, the river flow and SPM data available at the upstream NPP of Belleville will be analysed in order to understand the temporal variations of the incoming SPM fluxes. In a second phase, a soil erosion and hydrological model will be implemented to understand the production processes in the upstream catchments. This second part will allow to determine the interactions of the SPM inputs in the river with the morphodynamics of the bed of the Loire between the two stations. We will present the methodology that has been designed to apprehend these two phases and the first results of the river SPM temporal dynamic at the Belleville NPP station.</p>

Groundwater inputs towards surface water: quantification and impact on the river water quality using chemical and isotope fingerprints (87Sr/86Sr), example of the Loire River (France)

<p>Within the Critical Zone, the river water quality plays a key role for the related ecosystems. The impact of contaminants delivered to surface water from groundwater inputs are often neglected, while they can constitute the major loads of nutrients or pesticides in some specific river sections. In this study, we focus on a limited section of the Loire River in France, downstream Orleans city, where the increase of the river discharge cannot be attributed to the confluence of the small tributaries. Indeed, previous studies have pointed out the role of the groundwater discharge from the large Beauce aquifer located to the north of the river, mainly focusing on the quantitative aspects.</p><p>Based here on geochemical and isotopic tracers, we first confirm groundwater inputs to the Loire River and we clearly attributed those inputs to the Beauce carbonate aquifer using the relationship between <sup>87</sup>Sr/<sup>86</sup>Sr and the Cl/Sr ratios. Secondly, the conservative tracers (Sr isotopes and Cl concentrations) allow assessing the groundwater contribution to the river to around 20% of the total discharge during low flow periods. This proportion is in full agreement with the previous studies based on heat budget method, where the river temperature is estimated with satellite thermal infrared images. Lalot et al. (2015) showed that the main groundwater discharge is concentrated along a 9 km transect just downstream of Orléans city with a discharge of 5.3 and 13.5 m<sup>3</sup>.s<sup>−1</sup> during summer and winter times, respectively. This is roughly in agreement with the calculations based on groundwater modelling (calculated groundwater discharge: 0.6 to 0.9 m<sup>3</sup>.s<sup>−1</sup>.km<sup>−1</sup>). Finally, we pointed out the quality impact of these groundwaters especially regarding nitrates. Groundwater impacts on surface water quality have recently been considered as a potential vector of surface water contamination but they are still weakly studied and quantified. Here, we show pics of nitrates concentrations that rapidly decrease in the Loire River (especially in low flow period) after the groundwaters inputs enriched in NO<sub>3</sub> coming from the highly anthropized Beauce aquifer because of intensive agriculture practices. The nitrate decrease in the river is probably due to a nitrate removal processes (plant/microbial uptake?). The impact of these inputs into the Loire but also into the small tributaries of the Loire River should be further investigated, especially regarding pesticides loads and fates, and their potential impact on the related ecosystems.</p><p>Lalot, E., Curie, F., Wawrzyniak, V., Baratelli, F., Schomburgk, S., Flipo, N., Piegay, H., Moatar, F., 2015. Quantification of the contribution of the Beauce groundwater aquifer to the discharge of the Loire River using thermal infrared satellite imaging. Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 19, 4479–4492.</p>

Past Hydrological Conditions in a Fluvial Valley: Records from C-O Isotope Signatures of Holocene Sediments in the Loire River (France)

Multi-proxy indices (grainsize distribution, mineralogy, δ18O, δ13C) in sediments from a meander infill in the Middle Loire alluvial plain of central France are used to highlight some aspects of the basin evolution over the period from 0 to 10,000 years BP. During the Late-Glacial and Holocene period, the lacustrine carbonate substratum of the alluvial plain was incised by the Loire River, creating numerous oxbows and channels related to meander migration. The channel fills consist mainly of fine clayey sediments deposited during flooding of the river, with an almost total absence of coarse-clastic and sandy material, except in the basal part. The record of isotope ratio variations together with the distribution of particle sizes allows the evolution of the river dynamics to be constrained. The strong decrease of carbonate δ13C in the upper part of the record is ascribed to a progressive closure of the meander and, thus, an increasing control of the C-isotope signature by biological activity in a local environment. Variations in carbonate δ18O, rather, reflect paleohydrological/paleoclimatic changes at the basin scale. The isotope record of the river dynamics also agrees with the variations in clay mineralogy.