WATER IN CHAMPAGNE ARDENNE REGION
1. Waterstreams.
Champagne-Ardenne region is crossed by many rivers, canals and other watercourses. We count more than eight rivers in our four departments. The most famous are : the Marne, the Meuse, the Aube and the Aisne rivers, many of them gave their names to the departments they crossed. There are also canals which follow these rivers like “the canal on the side of the Marne” or “the canal between Champagne and Bourgogne which originates in the Marne river and ends up in the Saône river”. The Aube department is also crossed by the Seine, which is one of the main rivers in France. Source : Wikipedia.org and fluvialnet.com/
There are more than six rivers and two small streams that flow in Champagne-Ardenne. There are the Marne, the Aisne, the Vesle, the Aube, the Meuse, the Seine, the Nau and the Mau. The Marne is a river located East of the Paris Basin. The Aisne starts at Somme-Aisne. The Vesle crosses mainly the Marne department where it originates but finishes its course in the Aisne. It is 139,4 km long. The Aube flows into the Seine. It gives its name to a
Lycée Etienne OEHMICHEN (France) – Novembre 2016
department : Aube. The Meuse is a European river that is 950 km long and runs into the North Sea. It originates at an altitude of 480 m.. The Seine is a French river, it flows in the Paris Basin and waters Troyes, Paris, Rouen and Le Havre.
In Champagne-Ardennes region there are six principal water streams named : - The Meuse river which is in the Ardennes “department”. - The Aisne which crosses the Ardennes too. -The Vesle which is in the Marne “department”. -The Marne river crosses the Marne and Haute-Marne “departments”. -The Seine crosses Paris and runs to the Aube. -The Aube river crosses the Aube “department”.
2. Groundwater tables. This refers to the underground surface beneath which soil or rock are saturated with water.
The Champagne-Ardenne region has massive reserves of water. The “Nappe de la craie” constitutes a vast reserve of water for the region as a whole. A combination of aquifers is present in the region. It’s a groundwater resource essential to The Marne department, to the southern parts or Ardenne and the north of Aube.
The chalk watertable is composed of a set of aquifers : - The chalk watertable in Thierache-Laonnois-Porcien ; - The one in south – central Champagne ; - The one in Senonais and in Pays d’Othe ;
Lycée Etienne OEHMICHEN (France) – Novembre 2016
- And the one in north Champagne .
Source : eduterre.ens-lyon.fr/eduterre/
3. Water pollution :
- Pesticides : Water in Champagne-Ardenne is polluted because of several dangerous products. In fact, the Marne “department” in Champagne-Ardenne is one of the French departments that consumes the biggest quantity of pesticides ( for vineyards, cereal crops in particular )
Pesticides are chemical substances used for fighting pests and protecting cultivations. They are dangerous for human health too, they can cause diseases like infertility or cancers. They can end up in the ground water or tap water. In 2016, researchers found in tap water a pesticide that is called Azatrine. It is very dangerous for children and pregnant women. It can cause mental problems for babies. Only 7% of streams stay without pesticides in France.
Lycée Etienne OEHMICHEN (France) – Novembre 2016
Picture taken on a website (Internet sources).
- Waste :
- The pollution by organic matters creates an asphyxiation of the environment by the consumption of dissolved oxygen, with a toxicity of the weakly biodegradable organic load. - Suspension materials create an increase of complications for photosynthesis, for the breathing of fish and the sealing of aquatic circles. Particles can transport various forms of pollution which can be organic and metallic: - Mineral pollution by salts, for example chlorides and sulfates. - Metallic pollution of the aquatic circles that is not biodegradable. - Physico-chemical pollution : thermal pollution due to the rejections of hot water and the modifications of water PH and color .
Picture taken on a website (Internet sources).
Lycée Etienne OEHMICHEN (France) – Novembre 2016
4. Water in Châlons-en-Champagne. My text will be about the streams in Châlons-en-Champagne and the nickname of this city.
To begin with , I will talk about the streams in Châlons-en-Champagne. There are lots of streams: the Marne, the Nau, the Mau, and the Canal… All in all, there are ten streams that run across the city.
Because there is water everywhere in Châlons, its nickname is “la Venise pétillante” so “sparkling Venice” !
Source: http://www.chalons-agglo.fr/les-cours-deau (sept. 2016)
Digital booklet made by : Charles Bisval – Manon Coupaud – Alexandre Fery – Emmy Fidelaine Champy – Steevy Guillou – Yoan Lambin – Julien Le Moal – Crystal Lebrun – Loïna Michel Colomb – Florian Schutz – Andréa Siméon – Julie Vicente.
Lycée Etienne OEHMICHEN (France) – Novembre 2016