2024-02-08 07:30:20
The objective of the competitiveness clusters is to support innovation within the territories where they are established. To face the major water challenges and take into account regional specificities, two new competitiveness clusters dedicated to water have been certified as part of phase V of the clusters, one for the north of France, the another for the south.
These two new entities succeed France Water Team, the division dedicated to water, itself resulting from the merger in 2019 of three clusters: Dream, Hydreos and Aqua-Valley. In January 2024, the government therefore decided to return to a more territorial distribution: Dream and Hydreos merged to form the “Northern Water Pole” and Aqua-Valley, which kept its name, became the pole for the south.
A particularly anticipated announcement
The announcement in March 2023 of the non-renewal of the labeling of the France Water Team cluster caused incomprehension. This decision seemed all the more strange as a month later, the government announced its action plan for resilient and concerted water management, the famous “ Water body » and its 53 measures to respond to the major challenges of sobriety, availability, water quality, and also the fight against drought crises.
While water-related problems accumulate from year to year, imagining being able to do without a center responsible for supporting innovation in this area seemed impossible.
Following this refusal, the Dream Eaux et Milieux clusters (based in Orléans) and Hydreos (Grand Est) then submitted a joint application, which was finally accepted on January 8.
Geographical specificities that are important
In the daily newspaper, La République du Center, Hervé Gaboriau, director of Dream explains why the geographical aspect is of great importance in water management. According to him : “The regional specificities, with, for example, the large water tables and industrial pollution problems in the north and the Cévennes rains in the south, are very different. »
The regional water charter for the PACA region also highlights these specificities:
- a contrasting geography, which has both Mediterranean and Alpine characteristics;
- a relatively abundant resource, but very unevenly distributed in time and space;
- major storage and transfer of water resources;
- historical experience in the collective management of surface resources, particularly in irrigation.
Furthermore, the charter also evokes very specific cultural characteristics and notes the loss of the “Provençal water culture”[1]. In addition, the fact that the south of France is a very touristy area also has consequences on water resources. We know that water is consumed in abundance by tourist accommodation, for the comfort of customers (swimming pools, spas, golf courses, etc.). This phenomenon can also be transposed to other tourist regions, particularly in the Mediterranean. In Spain, for example, the average consumption of a tourist equals double of the consumption of Spanish city dwellers!
Coordination to respond to national and international issues
Having two centers integrating regional specificities therefore seems logical. On the other hand, close collaboration between the two entities, north and south, will have to be implemented to respond to major issues of national or international scope. Indeed, we must not forget that, although they are based on a territorial anchor, the competitiveness clusters are above all engines of growth and employment, active on the international side since their creation in 2004.
The North Water Pole includes more than 300 stakeholders from the Artois-Picardie, Loire-Bretagne, Rhine-Meuse and Seine-Normandy hydrographic basins.
The Aqua-Valley center brings together 250 members, mainly in the Occitanie region and the South region.
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