Water management in systems with intermediate cover for energy.

Position summary :

Any accomodation offered :

Not mentioned

Internship description (the tasks, responsibilities, benefits) :

CONTEXT OF THE RESEARCH :

Intercropping cover crops have long been used for various services: nitrate traps, erosion control, carbon storage, green manure. Knowledge of their impact on the soil’s water reservoir is less well characterised, partly because they are destroyed or harvested late. In fact, these cover crops can be harvested for energy purposes: CIVE – Culture Intermediate à vocation Energétique. These resources are of major interest for the energy transition, and the needs could range from 6 to 20 million tonnes of dry matter depending on the scenario, i.e. 1 to over 2 million hectares. Faced with these challenges, production basins with high production potential (New Aquitaine region) are looking into the management of rainwater and irrigation in these double-crop sequences for energy (2 food crops and 1 energy crop in 2 years). What is the impact of these sequences of 3 crops in 2 years on soil water recharge? What are the risks for each of the crops in these sequences? Which basins are suitable for growing these intermediate crops?

AIM OF THE WORK :

The aim is to study the water supply regimes and qualify the risks and intensity of the risks of water stress for each of the crops in these sequences of 3 crops in 2 years (RACYNE project). CIVE crops harvested more or less late have a potential impact on the yield of subsequent food crops. What is the risk of reduced production in different basins and for different water supply regimes?

METHODS CONSIDERED :

– Literature review on CIVE, intermediate crops and the soil water reservoir.

– Appropriation of different water balance models and definition of their limitations with regard to the topic.

– Qualification of production basins: soil types, crop sequences, crop management and water supply regimes.

– Simulation of water balances for successive crops.

– Identification of stresses and stress intensities.

– Simulation of the impact on food production via yield loss relationships depending on the level of water supply.

REQUIRED PROFILE :

– Agricultural engineer with a taste for agronomy and cropping system approaches

– Knowledge and use of R

– Aptitude for forecasting and simulation tools (models)

– Analytical, rigorous and organised;

– Communication skills. Proficiency in French is required.

Job Details :