On October 1st, the ORION project, led by Dr. Melissa Palos Ladeiro, was officially launched. This project is one of the seven initiatives supported by the University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne (URCA) as part of the Interreg VI France-Wallonie-Vlaanderen 2021–2027 program, a territorial cooperation program funded by the European Union. Its goal is to promote cross-border exchanges between the Hauts-de-France Region, the Grand Est Region, Wallonia, as well as East and West Flanders.

The ORION project focuses on assessing the chemical and microbiological pressures exerted on the aquatic ecosystems of the Meuse, to better understand their vulnerability and resilience capacity. This work will help model and predict water quality in the transboundary basins of the Meuse (Ardennes, Wallonia, Netherlands), and develop innovative management tools for water agencies and other stakeholders.

ORION revolves around four main axes:

• Collection and sharing of existing data from different partners.
• Chemical and microbiological diagnosis to assess water quality.
• Ecotoxicological evaluation of the effects on aquatic species.
• Predictive scenarios to anticipate the consequences of pressures on ecosystems.

This project will create operational tools capable of identifying and visualizing chemical, microbiological, and ecotoxicological hazards and predicting the changes in surface water quality, which is crucial for recreational activities and human consumption, particularly in Belgium, where drinking water is primarily sourced from surface waters.

The ORION project follows up on the work conducted under the DIADeM project, which already addressed major cross-border issues regarding the water quality of the Meuse.

URCA is proud to collaborate with partners such as Sebio and Escape Laboratories, the University of Namur, the University of Liège, ACTALIA, INERIS, and ISSEP to tackle this environmental challenge.

Stay tuned for updates on ORION's progress!