RESEARCH PROJECTS
Check out the research projects I have been involved.
2014 - 2017
MeTra
Traceability for Mercury Measurements
Mercury in its many chemical forms is highly toxic to human, animal and environmental health and the assessment of the ongoing effect of mercury on humans and the environment is critically dependent on accurate measurements to assess concentrations and trends. This challenge is complicated by the various chemical forms of mercury and its presence in a number of different matrices.
Despite this, the measurement infrastructure to provide traceable measurements of forms of mercury is absent in Europe, and globally.
European Directives are awaiting the arrival of a solid metrological infrastructure providing traceability and reduced uncertainties for mercury measurements to enable the introduction and subsequent enforcement of target values for mercury, and to ensure the reliability and comparability of measurement results, as is the case for similar toxic elements covered by legislation.
2011 - 2014
ORQUE-SUDOE
L'Observatoire de Recherche sur la Qualité de l’Environnement du grand Sud-Ouest Européen
This project coordinates the efforts and skills of different partners to develop innovative and reliable tools to monitor the quality of pilot areas in the long term.
The ultimate goal of ORQUE-SUDOE project is to contribute to the better protection of the environment on the southwest european territory and provide reliable tools that enable the natural environment long-term monitoring.
This long-term vision is essential when assessing the implementation of environmental policies to ensure the protection and sustainable conservation of the environment as well as evaluating the anthropogenic activities and their impact on the bio- and chemo-diversity of the natural environment.
2011 - 2014
LIGA
Etude d'une substance appelée "liga" sur le littoral basque
LIGA is a slimy and smelly substance which clogs the nets and damages the fishermen work. It occurs regularly near the Basque and South Landes coast and its composition is unknown. Therefore, a program was designed to understand and map the LIGA occurrences and assess the health risk as well as the ecological and economical impact of the presence of this substance in order to preserve or restore the Basque coast.
2012 - 2014
EXPLOR
Exploration des Sources et des Impacts de Contaminants Emergents dans l’Estuaire de l’Adour
Contaminants of emerging concern are ubiquitous chemicals not historically considered as contaminants and therefore not included in monitoring programs. As a result, data in aquatic environments is unavailable and further studies are urgently needed.
The EXPLOR project was divided in 3 major lines of action:
1 - Development and validation of innovative analytical methods for the quantification of these emergent compounds;
2 - Screening of these molecules in the Adour estuary and determination of sources;
3 - Study the impact on resident and migratory organisms in terms of bioaccumulation, genetic response, energy status and behavior.
2009 - 2013
RIPOST
Recherche Interdisciplinaire sur la Problématique OSTréicole du Bassin d'Arcachon: approches in situ et expérimentale
Many important activities take place in the Arcachon Bay (France), not only economic but also leisure activities, which affect the area due to the increasing of anthropogenic pressures (such as tourism, domestic, agricultural and industrial).
Environmental vulnerability of the Arcachon Bay and the stakes involved in the quality of its waters warranted special attention on the risks of chemical pollution.
The Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas is the main species of Arcachon Bay and has been recently associated with good water quality. In fact it is used as sentinel organism as the sustainability of their livestock may be indicative of a change in the quality of the environment directly affecting the physiology of these bivalves.
The objective of the RIPOST project was to characterize the main sources of contamination of the Arcachon Bay, by monitoring the entry of contaminants into the water column and studying the impact of these inputs and their variability in the Bassin d'Arcachon oysters.
Personally, I was responsible for the sample preparation and analysis of organometallic compounds (such as methylmercury and TBT) in the oysters collected in the Arcachon Bay.