News from IFGR and the rivers of the world

A study published in the British scientific journal Nature and relayed by the radio station Franceinfo sounded the alarm on the important role played by the reservoirs of both large and small dams in mosquito reproduction and the transmission of malaria. Dams at the heart of development in sub-Saharan Africa   Dam building is the […]

Gil Mahé, director of research at the Institute of Research and Development (IRD) is a specialist in the great African rivers. Here, he shares his knowledge to provide better understanding of the mechanisms in play in the Inner Niger Delta, an extraordinary wetland. He also sets out its perspectives, with the predictable impacts of climate change on this habitat and above all on human activities.

Last May, on the occasion of the operation to manage sediments on the Upper Rhone, French Swiss cooperation acted in the field to perform a mission that brought together the authorities and industrial operators of both countries.

Albania, its plains, mountains and above all, the Vjosa, Europe’s last wild river. Preserved over the centuries, this 272 kilometre-long river is threatened by dam projects and poor protection of water resources and habitats.

Hard hit by drought the Colorado river is at the centre of concern in southwestern America, since it is vital for seven states. On 25 May, the level of Lake Mead – the largest American reservoir – fell to 44 metres below its usual height, and there is no sign of it rising. The latest forecasts issued by the federal government are critical, as they predict a threshold of shortage in 2022 and that severe restrictions on water use will be necessary in Arizona, Nevada and Mexico.

Microplastics threaten aquatic habitats everywhere in the world. In the United States, researchers have discovered that a type of freshwater algae that has developed considerably in the Great Lakes is capable of capturing large quantities of microplastics. Nonetheless, plastic pollution is not about to disappear as explained in the following.