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DREAM

 Land Dynamics, functioning of agricultural areas and modelling

The research conducted in the DREAM team aims to understand the functioning of agricultural areas, and in particular plant production dynamics as a function of the agropedoclimatic context, the interactions between plant production and water resources, and the farming system evolution under the constraints of global change.

The main research proposes both systemic analyses on the functioning of different land uses in a territory, and more deterministic analyses to better describe the flows transfer mechanisms and processes acting in the landscape mosaic. The research team develops integrated approaches that cover the entire continuum from the water table to the atmosphere, considering the spatio-temporal variability of environmental properties and agricultural and management practices. To this aim, we rely on remote sensing data, experimental measures and various functioning models. The objective is to make projections on the plant production capacity at the regional scale and on the impacts on water resources availability, in order to propose scenarios of global changes adaptation.

Main features

-       From parcel to regional scale

-       Focus on Mediterranean crops and landscapes and semi-arid environments

-       Analysis of the continuum from the groundwaters to the atmosphere

-       Consideration of land uses: agricultural areas and their relationship with natural and peri-urban areas

-       Global changes / water resources and plant production

Specifities and competences

-       Analysis of multiple determinants of agricultural systems spatial distribution

-       Cross competences in soil sciences/agrometeorology/agronomy and in modeling/experimentation

-       Parameterization of crop models & Soil-Plant-Atmosphere transfer models (SVAT), and geochemical models

-       Development of modeling chains (interfacing, coupling, spatialization)

-       Mathematical methods for modeling: inverse methods (remote sensing, in situ sensors...), uncertainties, sensitivity, model evaluation

-       Soil-Plant-Atmosphere transfers, in particular estimating energy and water balances

-       Spatialization, (with Remote Sensing & GIS and observations)

-       Use of IRT for monitoring transfers