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U3E is an experimental unit of the French National Institute for Research in Agriculture, Food and the Environment (INRAE), combining large-scale facilities and skills that are unique in Europe. It enables multidisciplinary research questions to be addressed on all the components of continental hydrosystems.

This multi-site unit is made up of complementary tools that enable work to be carried out at different scales, along the individual - population - community - ecosystem continuum, and in contexts of increasing complexity, from crystallisers to natural environments.

Some sites are particularly suited to long-term monitoring, while others are dedicated to experimental approaches. A historical collection (over 40 years old) of fish tissues completes the set-up.
 

For long-term monitoring, the hydrographic networks of the Bresle, Oir and Scorff rivers are instrumented to measure, describe and compare changes in these ecosystems.

Experimentation is carried out at the Rennes and Le Rheu sites, where numerous parameters can be controlled and complex experimental designs carried out.

All U3E activities are carried out in accordance with the environmental management system (EMS) and are ISO 14001 certified.