Slowing down and keeping water in upstream catchments: issues, solutions and assessment of hydrological effects
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Abstract
Small rural watersheds are increasingly affected by hydrometeorological hazards and water imbalances, leading to soil erosion, reduced water availability for aquatic and terrestrial ecosytems, water stress impacting forests, as well as runoff-induced flooding and both agricultural and hydrological droughts. Climate change is amplifying the frequency and intensity of these events. In response, scientists and managers are devising and implementing various measures aimed at infiltrating and conserving water in soils and landscapes. These approaches—referred to as Nature-based Solutions (NbS), Natural Water Retention Measures (NWRM), or “regenerative hydrology”—aim to strengthen the resilience of agro- and ecosystems. They draw on knowledge and techniques from agroecology, conservation agriculture, ecological and vegetation engineering, rainwater harvesting, and related fields. These measures concern agricultural and forestry practices, the creation or restoration of natural environments (grasslands, hedgerows, wetlands, forests) or minor landscaping (ditches, terraces, infiltration or storage ponds).
What hydrological effects of these measures can be expected? This article presents the results of a recent synthesis conducted by INRAE based on a bibliographic analysis and interviews with experts, scientists and managers (Reverdy et al., 2025). The results show that the effectiveness of individual, localised measures is relatively well established but highly dependent on the local soil and climate conditions. On the other hand, the potential at the watershed scale remains largely unexplored, limited by the lack of rigorous large-scale monitoring, the complexity of hydrological interactions and the limitations of modelling. While experts highlight a growing interest in these approaches, they also warn against the risks of simplification and hasty extrapolation. They recommend multidisciplinary, contextualised research to consolidate knowledge and develop tools for territorial transposition.
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