Glossaire de A à Z


Parameter

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique
Property of a medium or part of it which helps to assess its characteristics and/or quality and/or fitness to some uses. The parameter can firstly be of two types: quantitative and qualitative, and secondly of five kinds: physical, chemical, environmental, microbiological and hydrobiological.
Source
According to OFB

Parameter Group

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique
Large family of parameters measured in water, whether it is a set of biological indexes or a set of physico-chemical parameters.
Source
According to OFB

Pareto optimality

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Situation in which any improvement in the well-being of an individual (or a class of individuals) can only be achieved at the expense of another individual (or another class of individuals). The Pareto optimality is a situation where all the initial allocation has been shared. As such, it is a reference situation in the economic theory on resources management.
Source
According to Patrice Dumas (economist)

Parrot feather

Updated on 19/11/2024
Définition
Sens commun

An aquatic to amphibious plant forming submerged or emergent meadows with knotty stems that can reach 3 to 4 meters in length and a few millimeters in diameter. This species thrives in slow-moving or stagnant waters, preferably well-lit and shallow (up to a maximum depth of 3 meters).

Source
according to National Botanical Conservatory of Brest

Participatory sciences

Updated on 08/07/2019
Définition
Sens commun

Information collection programmes involving public participation in a scientific process. This participation is carried out in particular for the collection of field observations. An example is the Vigie-Nature participatory science programme founded by the National Museum of Natural History.

Source
according to Collectif national Sciences participatives - Biodiversité

Particulate organic matter

Updated on 04/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Designates living or dead organic particles suspended in water.
Source
According to Ifremer

Patrimonial value

Updated on 19/06/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Non-utilization value of environmental assets, simply due to the fact that this heritage exists.
Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment

Payment card

Updated on 19/06/2018
Définition
Sens commun
A card proposed to surveyed people (in contingent valuation) giving several contribution amounts and on which they simply tick off the desired amount.
Source
According to Nathan

Payments for Environmental Services (PSE)

Updated on 23/09/2020
Définition
Sens technique

Des instruments économiques qui rémunèrent les agriculteurs pour les actions qu’ils engagent volontairement afin de restaurer et protéger les écosystèmes. Ils répondent aux défis de la transition agro-écologique

Source

Pedology

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens commun
Science whose purpose is the study of soils, their formation and their evolution, particularly in an agricultural context.
Source
according to BRGM and OFB

Pelagic

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
As opposed to "benthic", it describes organisms and processes occurring in the ocean (open water) and not close to the bottom.
Source
According to Ifremer

Pelagic zone

Updated on 27/02/2019
Définition
Sens commun

Part of slow-flowing aquatic environments, where the bottom is too deep to allow plants to grow.

Source
d'après OIEau

perched groundwater

Updated on 19/06/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Volume of groundwater in an impermeable basin, and at all times with an altitude higher than the surface of a watercourse.
Source
According to BRGM

Performance of water distribution network

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique

Volume of water consumed by users (private, industrial and other) and the public utility (for the management of the drinking water system) in relation with the volume of drinking water introduced into the supply system.

Source
according to OFB

Permanent grassland

Updated on 19/06/2018
Définition
Sens commun
All natural meadows, pastures, grazing lands and productive moors.
Source
According to Poitou-Charentes Regional Council

Permeability

Updated on 25/02/2019
Définition
Sens commun
Property of a porous solid to let water through.
Source
according to the French Dictionary of Surface Hydrology
Sens technique
Property of a body, a solid - especially a soil, a rock - to be penetrated and crossed by a fluid, water in particular, under the effect of a potential gradient. A parameter expressing quantitatively this property, with respect to the characteristics of the fluid, water in particular: flow that can pass through a unit section of the solid considered, under the effect of a hydraulic load gradient unit, under determined conditions of pressure and temperature (homogeneous size at a speed, noted K).
Source
According to the hydrologie.org website and Jean Margat, January 1999

Pesticide

Updated on 11/04/2022
Définition
Sens commun

Terme souvent associé dans les esprits aux produits utilisés en agriculture pour lutter contre les mauvaises herbes ou protéger les cultures des insectes et des moisissures. Pourtant ce terme regroupe en réalité différents types de produits utilisés pour des usages très variés dans un cadre professionnel - entretien des routes, des aéroports et des voies de chemin de fer, des parcs et des jardins publics, des cimetières ; opérations de dératisation ou de désinsectisation - ou dans notre environnement quotidien - lutte contre les insectes à la maison, désherbage des allées, protection des plantes du jardin, lutte contre les parasites de nos animaux de compagnie comme les puces ou les tiques….

Source
d'après Ministère chargé de la santé, Ministère de l'agriculture
Sens technique

Substance chimique ou des préparations utilisées pour lutter contre des organismes considérés comme nuisibles :   pour la prévention, le contrôle ou l’élimination d’organismes indésirables, qu’il s’agisse de plantes, d’animaux (insectes, acariens, mollusques, etc.), de champignons ou de bactéries. Une fois appliqués sur des cultures ou plus généralement dans l'environnement, ces composés ont une action polluante dans la mesure où ils peuvent affecter non intentionnellement des organismes non nuisibles, sur site, ou suite au transfert de leurs résidus dans des espaces éloignés.

Le terme « pesticide » (dérivé du mot anglais pest ou ravageur) est souvent associé aux produits utilisés en agriculture pour lutter contre les adventices (« mauvaises herbes ») ou protéger les cultures des nuisibles comme les insectes ravageurs ou les organismes responsables de maladies tels que les champignons. Ce terme regroupe ainsi différents types de produits utilisés pour des usages très variés dans un cadre professionnel ou dans notre environnement quotidien.

Les consommateurs sont exposés aux pesticides parce que ceux-ci demeurent en faibles quantités sur les récoltes,…

Source
d'après OFB, Ministère chargé de la santé et Ministère chargé de l'agriculture

Phosphates

Updated on 25/02/2019
Définition
Sens technique
Organophosphorus compounds derived from phosphoric acid. Phosphates are used in agriculture as fertilisers. Emissions of large quantities of phosphates are released into the environment by mining. Phosphates have a lot of effects on organisms. Indeed, increasing phosphorus levels in surface water increases the growth of phosphate-dependent organisms, such as algae and duckweed. Water then becomes rather unlivable for other organisms. This phenomenon is called eutrophication.
Source
according to Wikipedia

Phosphorus cycle

Updated on 06/09/2018
Définition
Sens commun
All exchanges and transformations of phosphorus in the different components of the environment. Unlike many other biogeochemical cycles, the phosphorus cycle has no impact on the atmosphere.
Source
According to Wikipedia and Lenntech

Photosynthesis

Updated on 06/09/2018
Définition
Sens commun
The ability of plants to consume carbon dioxide from the air, to assimilate carbon compounds and to release oxygen.
Source
according to IFREMER

Physical Data Model

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique
Graphical representation of tables in a database and the relationships between them. In this sense, it is the structuring design of a database.
Source
According to OFB and IOWater

Physico-chemical

Updated on 25/02/2019
Définition
Sens commun

Physical and chemical characteristics of water. Inside a water analysis, the observed parameters are quite numerous, and all of these allow to determine the physical-chemical water quality, which determines the maintenance of river biodiversity. These parameters could be for example, temperature, turbidity, concentration of organic matter, mineral, nitrogen, etc.

Source
according to the Ministry of Environment

Phyto-purification

Updated on 06/09/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Techniques using natural processes combining "plants, soil, microorganisms" in an artificially created ecosystem, especially for wastewater treatment.
Source
according to Runying Wang (ecologist)

Phyto-remediation

Updated on 04/12/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Remediation of soil or water with plants that degrade certain pollutants or concentrate them before their removal for treatment elsewhere.
Source
according to CELF

Phytobenthos

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique
All luminescent algae and cyanobacteria that live on the substrate (rather than in the water column).
Source
According to OFB

Phytoplankton

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens commun

Set of microscopic plant organisms that live in suspension in water (algae ...). Phytoplankton is the first link in the food chain in the marine ecosystem. There are approximately 4,000 phytoplankton species worldwide. Some of them can proliferate significantly by forming red, brown or green waters, other species are toxic but most of them are completely harmless.

Source
d'après OFB

Piezometer

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique

In the strict sense, a device used for measuring the pressure head at a given point in an aquifer system, which indicates the pressure at that point, by allowing the observation or recording of an unconfined water level or a pressure. The piezometer concept was extended to all man-made (wells, wells, gravel pits, etc) or natural structures (sinkholes, caves, etc) that allow access to groundwater. We then rather speak of non-operated well which allows measurement of the groundwater level at a given point of the water table. This level which varies with the groundwater exploitation provides information about the…

Source

Piezometric level

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Level reached by water at one point and at a given time in a pipe reaching the groundwater sheet. The piezometric level can be transferred to a piezometric map. Some non-operated wells are used to measure this level, they are piezometers or observation wells. This level corresponds to the groundwater pressure; it is usually indicated in NGF metres (French Surveying and Levelling). When this level is above ground level, the groundwater is called artesian: water is gushing out. The piezometric maps established with all measured data give a graphical representation of the groundwater surface and can track its evolution over time and identify its direction of flow.
Source
According to BRGM

Piezometric record

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique

The piezometric record is the collecting of the evolutions in time of the monitored groundwater level or piezometric level (see piezometric level). It consists of measurements that link the water level to a given date. Depending on the variability of groundwater level, the measurements are more or less close in time. The measurements obtained are positive or negative with respect to the measurement benchmark: they are positive when the groundwater level is below the benchmark measurement (the most common cases) and negative in the opposite case (artesian wells). Artesian: a well is artesian when the water is gushing. A record is represented by a curve which is time-slotted to be stored in a succession of points, each point representing a groundwater level at any given time. Points are linked to each other by means of a code that indicates whether a point is related to the preceding point in time. If the point is not related, it is then the initial point of a new part of the record…

Source
According to BRGM

Piezometry

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Depth of the water level in the soil.
Source
According to Poitou-Charentes Regional Council

Plankton

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
All plants (phytoplankton) or animals (zooplankton) of very variable sizes and belonging to a variety of groups, that are living in suspension in water and whose more or less passive movements are determined by currents.
Source
According to Poitou-Charentes Regional Council

Plant protection product

Updated on 29/03/2022
Définition
Sens technique

Plant protection products. There may be some confusion with pesticides, which are phytosanitary products, but only intended to fight against organisms considered harmful. Phytosanitary products are used in large quantities in various ranges of application: firstly agriculture, but also roads (maintenance of roads and railways) and various private uses (gardening, treatment of facilities, etc). In fact phytosanitary products style the same products as pesticides, but they are then used for agriculture and crop protection. The phytosanitary products include many classes of products such as insecticides (which kill insects), fungicides (which eliminate fungi), herbicides (weeding), nematicides (which kill nematodes and earthworms), rodenticides (used to get rid of various rodents such as rats, mice, field mice, garden dormice, etc).

Source
According to Ifremer

Pluviometry

Updated on 06/09/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Study of precipitations, their nature (rain, snow, soft hail, fog), their distribution and the techniques used for their measurement. Rainfall, with the distribution of Earth's temperature, conditions terrestrial climates, the nature and functioning of ecosystems and their primary productivity. It is one of the factors conditioning the development of human societies.
Source
according to Wikipedia

Point of compliance

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Place for the quality control of an environment where the applicable requirements for a particular purpose must be checked.
Source
According to the Ministry of Ecology

Polder

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Coastal marshes which are diked, drained and reclaimed.
Source
According to Ifremer

Pollutant

Updated on 19/06/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Substance or process of physical, chemical or biological nature introduced by man that may contaminate various terrestrial, limnic or marine ecosystems. The pollutant is a substance found in different biotopes at a higher concentration, or in some cases, at a concentration different from its usual one. We distinguish primary pollutants (directly discharged into the natural environment) from secondary pollutants (derived from reactions on the first ones
Source
According to Ifremer

Pollutant transfer

Updated on 06/09/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Migration of a polluting substance within an environment or between different environments. Pollutant transfer is influenced by many factors, such as the intrinsic chemical properties of pollutants and the nature of the environment in which they are.
Source
according to BRGM

Polluted site

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens commun
Site where the soil or subsoil or groundwater has been polluted by former waste deposits or by the infiltration of pollutants; this pollution being likely to cause a nuisance or a permanent
Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment and OFB

Polluter-pays principle

Updated on 04/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Principle established in the Environmental Code, whereby the costs arising from measures to prevent, reduce and control environmental pollution must be borne by the polluter.
Source
According to the Environmental Code

Pollution

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Deterioration of the environment by chemical, physical or organic substances that cannot (or cannot anymore) be eliminated naturally by the ecosystem. Pollution is mainly caused by human activity. It is the result of the introduction into the environment of an artificial substance which is non-degradable or which exceeds the limit amount tolerated by the environment. Pollution may contribute to or cause: a threat to human health, deterioration of biological resources, ecosystems or property, a hindrance to a legitimate use of the environment. An adjective is often associated with the term "pollution", so we speak about: historical pollution, new pollution, residual pollution, chronic pollution,
Source
According to Ademe

Pollution basin

Updated on 06/09/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Storm basin intended to retain the pollution of the first waters during periods of heavy rain.
Source
according to FNDAE

Pollution index

Updated on 27/02/2019
Définition
Sens technique

Arbitrary function of the concentration of one or more pollutants which is a measure of the potential harmfulness of pollution.

Source
d'après BRGM

Pollution rights market

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Market of tradable permits that entitle a stakeholder (company, individual, etc) to discharge pollutants or withdraw a resource. The State sets a target of environmental quality and distributes or allocates the corresponding number of rights. These rights can then be bought and sold between stakeholders, a polluter cannot discharge more pollutants than its permits allow.
Source
According to Philippe Bontems (economist)

Pollution transfer

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Reducing an environmental impact at one stage of the life cycle to create or worsen another problem at another stage of the life cycle and/or another impact. This finally leads to transferring the problems or creating new ones.
Source
According to Ademe

POLMAR Plan

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique

Regulatory and operational framework for action in case of accidental pollution of the sea, to coordinate human resources and mobilize control means. The POLMAR plan was implemented in 1978 (Circular of the Prime Minister) after the Amoco Cadiz disaster. A circular from the Prime Minister dated 17 December 1997 confirmed the existence of two types of action (two components): the POLMAR/SEA plan which is triggered by the maritime prefects and deals with interventions at sea, and the POLMAR/LAND plan which is triggered by the prefects of the Departments concerned by coastal

Source
According to Ifremer

Polychlorinated biphenyls

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Family of synthetic organochlorine compounds with high molecular weight and C10H (10-n) Cln chemical formula. Industrially produced since 1930, polychlorinated biphenyls, better known by their acronym PCBs, have been widely used as additives in paints, inks and dry fillings for wall coverings, and were gradually prohibited. The fate of PCBs in the environment is explained by their physico-chemical properties: they are persistent, lipophilic and semi-volatile compounds. They do not show acute toxicity. However, chronic exposure to low doses can cause various dysfunctions observed on laboratory…
Source
According to Ifremer

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Group of more than 100 different organic compounds consisting of several benzene rings. Some of them are persistent and carcinogenic. The polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, better known by the acronym PAH, are generally formed during the incomplete combustion of coal, oil, gas, waste or other organic substances.
Source
According to Rhine-Meuse Water Agency

Pond

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens commun
A body of water of natural or artificial origin, with shallow depth and without stable thermal stratification. It is fed mainly by its catchment area, and is usually characterized by high plant growth and animal productivity (fish, amphibians, reptiles, resident and migratory birds, etc).
Source
According to OFB

Pond with brackish water

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Natural body of water occurring in more or less direct connection with the sea and inland waters, which gives it a salinity approximately between 2 and 20°/°°.
Source
According to Rhone-Mediterranean and Corsica Water Agency

Population

Updated on 04/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
In the hialeutic sense, a group of individuals that actually reproduce (or have the physical possibility to) among themselves and thus pass on their inherited traits to their offspring. This group is relatively isolated from other similar reproduction units. In some cases, because of the complexity of identifying individuals in the group, it may be acceptable to restrict the term by associating to it the name of the geographical area of the studied group.
Source
According to Ifremer

Population equivalent (pop.eq)

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique

Assessment unit of organic pollution found in water representing the quality of organic matter discharged per day per capita. This measurement unit can easily compare the flow of pollutants. Among the parameters * characterizing pollution, the pollution treated in wastewater treatment plants is quantified by the population equivalent. The population equivalent is defined by Article R2224-6 of the General Code of Local Authorities, as the organic biodegradable load having a five-day biochemical oxygen demand * (BOD5) of 60 g of oxygen per day.

Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment

Potential Hydrogen

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Index to express the degree of acidity or alkalinity of a matter. A potential hydrogen (pH) is said "neutral" when it is equal to 7, "acid" when it is less than 7 and "alkaline" (or basic) when it is greater than 7. For drinking water, it must be greater than 6.5 units. Below this limit, the water is aggressive, with a corrosive effect on pipes, which may lead to the dissolution of toxic metals such as lead. The pH should be less than 9, the limit above which the water is too alkaline.
Source
According to Poitou-Charentes Regional Council

Precautionary principle

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique
Usually refers to caution in action. More specifically it is a constitutional principle, included in the Environmental Charter (Article 5): "When the occurrence of any damage, although uncertain in current scientific knowledge, may be so serious and irreversible for the environment, public authorities shall, by application of the precautionary principle and in their areas of responsibilities, develop procedures for risk assessment and take provisional and proportionate measures to preclude the occurrence of the damage".
Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment and OFB

Precipitation

Updated on 19/06/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Total volume of atmospheric precipitation, whether in the solid or liquid state (rain, snow, hail, fog, frost, dew, etc), usually measured by meteorological or hydrological institutes.
Source
According to Eurostat

Preservation

Updated on 19/06/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Operation for raising awareness, for the protection or appropriate management of lands threatened by latent human pressure. This can be achieved by biotope protection orders, the purchase of lands on an extended alluvial plain or in a potential river mobility area, contracts with farmers for extensive farming on riparian lands, the definition of "buffer" zones, etc.
Source
According to Cemagref

Pressure

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique
According to the DPSIR (Driving Forces - Pressures - State - Impacts - Responses) conceptual data model, the development of human activity which may affect aquatic environments. It may be discharges, water withdrawals, artificialization of aquatic environments, fish catches, etc.
Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment and OFB

Pricing

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Policy to condition water use to the payment of a price. The Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC calls on Member States to ensure that by 2010 pricing policies encourage users to use water efficiently to avoid wastage.
Source
According to the Ministry of Ecology

Primary sludge

Updated on 06/09/2018
Définition
Sens technique
It includes settleable solids removed during primary wastewater treatment in clarifiers. Primary sludge is rich in mineral matter.
Source
according to Wikipedia

Primary treatment

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Treatment of (urban) wastewater by a physical and/or chemical process involving the settling of suspended solids, or any other process to reduce by 20% at least the BOD5 of the incoming wastewater before discharge and by 50% at least the total suspended solids in the incoming wastewater.
Source

Primary/green sludge

Updated on 06/09/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Sludge resulting from the primary treatment by clarifier.
Source
according to the eco-enterprise development centre

Priority habitat

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Endangered habitat on the European territory of the Member States and for the conservation of which the EU has special responsibility. Priority habitats are indicated by an asterisk in Annexes I and II of the Habitats Directive.
Source
According to Poitou-Charentes Regional Council

Priority substance

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens réglementaire
Toxic substance, whose emissions and losses into the environment must be reduced, in accordance with the Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC. As planned in the Directive, a first list of substances or families of priority substances was defined by Decision No 2455/2001/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 2001 and was included in Annex X. These priority substances were selected according to the risk they pose to aquatic ecosystems:
Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment and OFB

Private cost

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Part of the social cost paid by the economic agent that generates it. The private cost is an internal cost.
Source
According to Rhone-Mediterranean and Corsica Water Agency

Processed data

Updated on 19/06/2018
Définition
Sens technique

Data inferred from other data using a sophisticated method to facilitate the understanding of what is observed (e.g. a collecting rate, the average yield of a wastewater treatment plant, etc). The goal is to make them usable for a given or understandable need for a specific audience (processed data can be an indicator).

Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment

Produced wastewater

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Amount of polluted water obtained by adding waste or heat (expressed in cubic metres - m3) and of substances (pollution in kg of BOD/day or comparable) added to the wastewater. These waters can be discharged after domestic use
Source
According to Eurostat

Productivity-change method

Updated on 19/06/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Method for assessing the value of an environmental good. When the latter is degraded, its production function may be affected: the loss of value of the good can then be measured in terms of productivity change induced by its degradation.
Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment

Profession/job object

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique

Set of homogeneous pieces of information from a professional viewpoint. A profession object is a shared concept in a data dictionary prepared by the National Service for Water Data and Reference-dataset Management (Sandre).

Source
According to OFB and IOWater

Programme of measures

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique

Document prepared for the basin or group of basins and for the duration of a six-year management cycle (2010-2015, 2016-2021, 2022-2027, etc), which identifies the key measures to be implemented for achieving the objectives defined in the river basin management plan (SDAGE), including the environmental objectives of the

Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment and OFB

Protected area

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique

Area designated as requiring special protection under the European directives. A register is established on a river basin scale identifying various protected areas: vulnerable areas ("Nitrates" Directive), sensitive zones ("Urban Wastewater Treatment" Directive), areas designated under the "Habitats" Directive and "Birds" Directive as bathing areas, shellfish areas, categories of streams (Directive 78/659/EEC). The

Source
According to the Ministry of Ecology

Protected species

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens commun
Plant or animal species benefiting from a legal protection status for reasons of scientific interest or the need to preserve the biological heritage.
Source
according to OFB and IUCN

Protection zone

Updated on 24/06/2020
Définition
Sens commun

Area defined by prefectural declaration of public utility (DUP) decree ensuring the protection of water catchments and their environment close to occasional pollution of chronic or accidental origin and diffuse pollution. These orders define three protection perimeters: the immediate protection perimeter (PPI), the close protection perimeter (PPR) and the distant protection perimeter (PPE).

Source
According to MEDDE
Sens technique

Limit of the legally reserved space around the catchments used for drinking water supply, after the opinion of a certified hydrogeologist. Handicraft, agricultural and industrial activities, and construction are prohibited or regulated there in order to preserve water resources, avoiding chronic or accidental pollution. We can legally distinguish three perimeters: the immediate protection perimeter (PPI) where the constraints are strong (possibilities of prohibition of activities), the close protection perimeter (PPR) where the activities are restricted, and the distant perimeter (PPE ) to guarantee the sustainability of the resource.

Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment and OFB
Sens réglementaire

According to article L1321-2 of the public health code, the catchment protection perimeter is defined as follows: "With a view to ensuring the protection of water quality, the act declaring public utility of water withdrawal works intended for the supply of human communities mentioned in article L. 215-13 of the environment code determines around the withdrawal point an immediate protection perimeter whose land is to be acquired in full ownership , a close protection perimeter within which can be prohibited or regulated all kinds of installations, works, activities, deposits, works, development or occupation of soils likely to directly or indirectly harm the quality of water and, the where appropriate, a remote protection perimeter within which the installations, works, activities, deposits, works, development or occupation of the land and deposits mentioned above may be regulated. "

Source
According to Legifrance

Protection-expenditure method

Updated on 19/06/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Method for assessing pollution costs by the expenses made by households to protect themselves from environmental degradation: purchase of softeners, bottled water, etc.
Source
According to Patrice Dumas (economist)

Protest zero

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Reject by respondents of the scenarios proposed during enquiries for contingent valuation. Some individuals may indeed declare a zero willingness to pay (protest zeros), while they are in favour of the proposed project. It is also possible to distinguish between "protest zeros" and "true zeros" during the investigation. The "protest zeros" are generally excluded from the analysis.
Source
According to Patrice Dumas (economist)

Provisional classification

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens réglementaire
Health classification of a shellfish farming area, based on results whose number does not establish a permanent classification, but allows a reliable assessment of the level of contamination. The provisional classification is replaced by a permanent classification when the number of required analyses is available.
Source
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and IOWater

Proximity catchment area

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique
Terrestrial part of the coastal area whose influence on the water quality of the marine part is the strongest. This part is the smallest sub-area of the natural cachtment area.
Source
According to Ifremer

Pruning

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens commun
The process of cutting off, in a selective manner, branches from a tree to orient or limit its growth.
Source
according to OFB

Public drinking water fountain

Updated on 06/09/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Fountain belonging to the municipal public domain, under municipal management.
Source
according to Wikipedia

public goods

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique
Goods or services whose use is non-rival and non-exclusive. Non-rivalry means that consumption of goods/services by one individual does not prevent their consumption by another individual. Non-exclusive means that all individuals have free access to the goods/services.
Source
According to OFB

Public inquiry

Updated on 06/09/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Administrative procedure by which a public body (the State, a town hall, a local authority...) invites the public to give its opinion on a development project. Opinions are collected by an Investigating Commissioner, who then issues a reasoned opinion. This opinion is then used to carry out an impact assessment study. Public inquiries are by definition available to the public and always modifiable by associations and other public groups during the consultation period.
Source
according to IFREMER

Public participation

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens commun

Approach, planned by the Water Framework Directive (WFD), for the public involvement in its implementation process. For each basin or group of basins, it includes public consultations carried out over six months on: the timetable and work programme for the preparation or updating of the river basin management plan (SDAGE); the provisional summary of important issues, as well as the planned SDAGEs and

Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment and OFB

Public river-basin territorial agency

Updated on 04/07/2018
Définition
Sens technique

Group of local authorities established, at a watershed or a group of sub-watersheds scale, in order to facilitate the flood prevention, the defense against the sea, the management of water resources, and the preservation and management of wetlands. When a Sub-basin Management Plan has been set up, the Public river-basin territorial agency contributes to its monitoring and development. It ensures also the consistency of the management project of the Public water management and development agency.

Source
according to Legifrance

Public service delegation

Updated on 19/06/2018
Définition
Sens technique

Contract by which a corporate body under public law entrusts the management of a public utility for which it is responsible to a public or private operator, whose remuneration is substantially linked to the result of the utility operation. The delegatee may possibly be responsible for building structures or for purchasing properties necessary for the utility. The fundamental difference between a public market and a public service delegation results from the method of payment chosen. For a public market, payment is made by the public buyer. For a public service delegation, remuneration derives from the operation of the utility, done at the delegatee's own risk.

Source
According to the Ministry of Economy

Public utility

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique
General interest under which the State gives advantages (recognition of public utility) or imposes obligations or constraints (public utility easement, expropriation for public utility).
Source
According to the Ministry for the Environment and OFB

Public water management and development agency

Updated on 25/02/2019
Définition
Sens commun

Group of local authorities in charge of the local management project and of the territorial water coordination, at the watershed scale. The Public water management and development agency has to ensure flood prevention as well as non-state-owned rivers management.

Source
according to Legifrance

Public water supply and sanitation services

Updated on 26/10/2022
Définition
Sens technique

Municipal public utility in charge of conveying drinking water to the consumer's tap and collecting and treating wastewater and stormwater before returning them to the natural environment. The 30,000 French public water supply and sanitation services are also in charge of the relations with the consumer: information, demand management, billing, etc. The "drinking water supply" service includes the abstraction of water from the natural environment, its potabilization and supply. The "sanitation" service includes the collection, conveyance and treatment of wastewater and the disposal or reuse of sludge…

Source
According to the Ministries of the Environment and Health and OFB

Public waterways domain

Updated on 05/03/2019
Définition
Sens commun

Domain consisting of rivers and lakes belonging to the State, local authorities or their groupings, and classified in their public domain fluvial. The delimitation of state watercourses is determined by decree in Council of State.

Source
d'après Ministère chargé de l'environnement

Pump

Updated on 06/09/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Device for rising up, back flowing or compressing fluids.
Source
according to the Larousse dictionary

Purification

Updated on 13/07/2018
Définition
Sens commun
Action to clean (safe water) by removing impurities. Process to reduce or eliminate pollutants in water. A wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) is a facility in which wastewater is treated. The treatment can also be natural although slower (self-purification).
Source
According to Ifremer and the Ministry for the Environment