Study Programmes 2015-2016
RISQ2007-1  
Hydrological hazards : floods, mudflows and groundwater overexploitation
Duration :
18h Th, 18h Pr
Number of credits :
Specialised master in natural hazards management3
Lecturer :
Alain Dassargues, Benjamin Dewals, François Petit
Coordinator :
Alain Dassargues
Language(s) of instruction :
French language
Organisation and examination :
Teaching in the second semester
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite :
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Course contents :
For the part given by A.Dassargues, the following topics are briefly addressed: groundwater overexploitation, groundwater balances, quantity indicators, groundwater sustainable management.
Based on real life examples, the part of the course given by B. Dewals provides an introduction to the complex issues of flood risk assessment and management. The course addresses shortly the following topics: types of floods, flood frequency estimation, influence of environmental changes, vulnerability and impacts, structural and non-structural measures for flood risk management, EU Floods Directive.
Learning outcomes of the course :
At the end of the course, the student will be able to:
  • understand theoretical and practical concepts and conditions leading to groundwater overexploitation;
  • explain the main environmental processes linked to groundwater overexploitation;
  • understand the main physical processes influencing different types of floods
  • interpret the results of flood frequency analysis
  • identify main the main impacts of floods
  • suggest relevant measures for flood risk management
Prerequisite knowledge and skills :
The course requires a knowledge of general geology and basic knowledges in hydraulics and mathematical analysis.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods :
The course is based on "ex cathedra" lectures. Since the course focuses more on a deep understanding of the concepts, the student is requested to take part actively in the lessons, during which the teacher interacts with the audience.
Mode of delivery (face-to-face ; distance-learning) :
Face-to-face
Recommended or required readings :
Assessment methods and criteria :
For aquifer overexploitation and floods : evaluated report on a case study on each topic.
Work placement(s) :
Organizational remarks :
The course will be concentrated on few days in the first part of the second semester.
Contacts :
For aquifer overexploitation: Prof. A. Dassargues Alain.Dassargues@ulg.ac.be
For the topic "Floods": Prof. Benjamin DEWALS Hydraulics in Environmental and Civil Engineering (HECE), B52/3 Tél. 04/366.92.83 B.Dewals@ulg.ac.be