Water storage is more essential than ever
Flying over the Fagnes, another contrast strikes the crew. While the fields have the colors of a desert, the vegetation has remained very green despite the scorching sun. The strength of the Fagnes is its spongy soil which offers an exceptional water storage capacity. If it retains water during floods, this soil, which is a real sponge, allows the water to be released gradually and thus to survive long periods of drought.
Beyond this exception, Benjamin Dewals is sounding the alarm because, with climate change, periods of drought and flooding will be more frequent and more intense in the coming years.
The Professor of Hydraulics at the University of Liège underlines the urgency of adapting to this new reality: “We can expect more very dry events, more prolonged droughts and interspersed with flooding phenomena. Water storage is more essential than ever. If possible in natural areas by limiting the sealing of soils by urbanization, by promoting the infiltration of water into the soil to recharge the water tables. Large dams, locks with a pumping system to recover water during river traffic, are means that should not be developed. Effective water management helps to mitigate the consequences of both floods and droughts. Sector by sector of activity, there are reflections to be had to reduce a certain vulnerability and this dependence on water.“