{"id":51125,"date":"2026-07-01T09:01:47","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T07:01:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tourduvalat.org\/?p=51125"},"modified":"2026-07-02T08:47:23","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T06:47:23","slug":"maelia-delta-a-new-tool-for-exploring-the-future-of-the-camargue-and-supporting-water-management-in-a-region-under-pressure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tourduvalat.org\/en\/newsletter-articles\/maelia-delta-a-new-tool-for-exploring-the-future-of-the-camargue-and-supporting-water-management-in-a-region-under-pressure\/","title":{"rendered":"MAELIA-Delta, a new tool for exploring the future of the Camargue and supporting water management in a region under pressure"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Rh\u00f4ne Delta is a complex socio-ecosystem where water shapes everything: <\/strong>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.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yet, against a backdrop 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 rainfall, rising sea levels) directly influence the hydro-salinity balance, a key parameter that influences the dynamics of habitats and species, and of human activities and related ecosystem services.<\/strong><\/p>\n

To better understand these complex interactions, in 2022<\/strong> 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.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Camargue Island: highly diverse landscapes and land uses <\/strong><\/h3>\n

In the Camargue, water is everywhere and everything depends on it. Its landscapes, biodiversity, and human activities are closely intertwined in a delicate balance.<\/strong><\/p>\n

This region is a vast mosaic of natural habitats (about 70% lagoons, marshes, salt scrub, grasslands, woodlands) and agricultural areas (about 25% rice farming, market gardening, open range horse and bull farms, and viticulture). This wide range of landscapes, shaped by contrasts in salinity and freshwater availability, makes the Camargue a biodiversity hotspot in France. Many species can be found here, and some with major heritage significance.<\/p>\n

The Delta is a vital refuge for a vast number of waterbirds. Throughout the year, it hosts numerous species, including the iconic Greater Flamingo, and one of its largest breeding colonies in the Mediterranean. In winter, the Camargue becomes an important stopover site for cranes, geese, and ducks, as well as for numerous passerines.<\/p>\n

This natural biodiversity is protected by a range of areas with different protection statuses: land-based protection (Coastal Protection Agency, Fragile Natural Areas), regulatory protection (National Reserve and Regional Nature Reserves, Regional Nature Park, Natura 2000), and designations (RAMSAR, UNESCO Biosphere Reserve). However, these protected areas are not isolated: they coexist with well-established agricultural activities, predominantly wheat and rice production (in 2023, 68% of all crops (SIT PNRSud 2026)). Increases in market gardening and fodder crops have been observed over the past twenty years; the latter are grown to meet the needs of livestock farming (grazing, hay) and for their roles in helping to improve soil quality (alfalfa) and in crop rotation (rice\/wheat) (SIT PNRSud, 2026). Open range livestock farming is also an integral part of the Camargue landscape, contributing to its cultural identity, biodiversity, and appeal to tourists.<\/p>\n

A <\/strong>territory shaped by water circulation<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Behind these landscapes, water circulation in the Delta play a key role. The functioning of the Camargue depends not only on rainfall, evaporation, and exchanges with the sea and the groundwater, but also on freshwater drawn from the Rh\u00f4ne, which has been embanked since the 19th century.<\/p>\n

This water flows through a complex network of agricultural irrigation and drainage canals. Some of it is pumped back into the Rh\u00f4ne, whilst the rest flows into various systems of ponds and lagoons, affecting their hydro-salinity balance, with consequences on biodiversity and various economic activities (fishing, hunting).<\/p>\n

In the Camargue, a large proportion of natural habitats, species, and human activities depend directly on how water is allocated amongst the various ways the land is used. In such an interconnected system, the consequences of changes are often difficult to anticipate. Changes in agricultural practices, a succession of drier years or modifications to canal management can produce cascading effects on soils, lagoons, biodiversity, and human activities. Understanding these interactions across the entire Delta therefore requires a tool capable of simultaneously modelling water, land use, and ecosystems.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Simplified diagram of the Camargue Island, situated between the two branches of the Rh\u00f4ne. The hydraulic infrastructure and pumping stations on the dykes of the Rh\u00f4ne and sea regulate the exchange of fresh and salt water between the catchment areas (a mix of agricultural land, natural wetlands, and hunting marshes) and the lagoon systems in the south.<\/span> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

MAELIA-Delta: a model to better anticipate the future of the Camargue<\/strong><\/h3>\n

How might changes in agriculture, climate, and water management transform the Camargue in the coming years?<\/strong><\/p>\n

To answer this question, the Tour du Valat and INRAE have been developing MAELIA-Delta since 2022. It is a software model that can simulate the dynamics of interactions between water allocation in agricultural catchment areas and natural habitats, agricultural activities, key ecosystem services, and several emblematic species in the region.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In practical terms, this tool enables us to test various scenarios for the region\u2019s future development: changes in agricultural practices, droughts, evolving water management policies, and more. The aim is not to predict the future, but to explore its possibilities. In this way, it will help us to better anticipate the consequences of future changes on the functioning of the entire Delta: both on natural habitats and on the human activities that depend on them.<\/p>\n

The simulations focus on several benefits that ecosystems provide to the region:<\/strong><\/p>\n