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The Settat region has seen significant population growth and major economic development through the establishment of an industrial area over the past two decades. In addition, this region is known for its agriculture which consists mostly of cereal crops (granary of Morocco). This growth has been accompanied by increased rates of urban and industrial liquid effluents discharged directly in the Boumoussa River which is considered an open sewer and which has led to a deterioration in the quality of this river waters. This situation has had an impact on the hydrodynamic behaviour and groundwater quality of the Settat aquifer. To contribute to alleviate this problem, a multidisciplinary study was conducted using physicochemical analyses and analyses of stable isotopes of water. The previous studies and new analyses reveal a chemical pollution of groundwater by surface flow of the Boumoussa River. The results show a phenomenon of groundwater evaporation, as well as the presence of irrigation return flow which mixes with the Boumoussa River to feed the aquifer. Based on these results, a conceptual model of water flow in the Settat aquifer, based on physicochemical and isotopic data, is proposed to help develop a more sustainable management of water resources.

Keywords: écoulement souterrain, ressources en eau, hydrochimie, isotopes stables de l'eau, Settat (Maroc), groundwater flow, water resources, water chemistry, stable isotopes of water, Settat (Morocco)

A study of regional pollution in the coastal aquifer system between Oum-er-Rbia River and Bir Jdid (Coastal Moroccan Meseta, Morocco) was based on data gathered from 1995 to 1998. The study improved the hydrogeological and hydrochemical understanding of the aquifers. The study examined the effects of significant rains on the quantity and quality of coastal groundwater. These waters exhibited high sensitivity to the rain input.Measurements undertaken since 1991 on 179 wells in the study area reveal that the groundwaters are highly mineralized - conductivity reaches more than 10 mS/cm, depending on season and well location. These results also show high chloride concentrations (more than 3500 mg/l), sodium concentrations frequently in the 500 - 1000 mg/l range and nitrates between 150 and 250 mg/l.In coastal Chaouia, these high concentrations of dissolved mineral salts aggravate the problem of supplying quality water to the rural population for drinking or even market-gardening irrigation purposes. The area is characterized by increased irrigated surfaces (more than 16000 hectares with 4125 m3 /s) and a demographic rise that has triggered the chaotic boring of more than 2000 wells into a heterogeneous aquifer sensitive to salinity. Possible sources of this high salinity include :Seawater intrusion into coastal aquifer sectors (mainly into a two-kilometre strip of coastline). The degree and the length of the marine intrusion were exacerbated by intensive pumping for irrigation needs, particularly during the dry season. Other factors such as coastal aquifer permeability, saturation zone thickness and basement depth also affect the degree and length of the marine intrusion. Seawater pollution is more marked in the southwestern coastal area.Reuse of irrigation saline waters, especially as groundwater circulates in the coastal and eastern sectors deep in the soil (to depths of 10 m).Several important factors have been highlighted concerning the origin of the chemical elements in solution and the mechanism of hydrochemical distribution: evaporation, lithology of tapped aquifers, water table depth, distance of wells from the coast, type of soil, use of fertilizers, frequency of pumping operations, and rainfall, among others.A regular network of 179 wells was monitored and surveyed in this study. Spatial and temporal changes in the water table and in the hydrochemistry of the aquifer were monitored between 1991 and 1998, a span which included an exceptionally rainy period (1996). Data are compared with those from 1971, the year groundwater exploitation began.The studied region is characterized by a semi-arid climate, mean annual rainfall of 391 mm (between 1977 and 1998), mean temperature of 17.8 °C, and mean rainfall input of 142 mm. In the dry season, high temperature combined with low rainfall and intensive pumping operations give rise to salinization of shallow groundwater. Groundwater in the area of study circulates in two principal hydrogeological matrices :1. Sandy-calcareous Plio-Quaternary and paleozoic strata in costal sectors and the eastern part located between Tnine Chtouka and Bir Jdid. These hydrogeological strata are characterized by significant porosity and permeability and are exploited at a shallow depth, generally less than 14 m, under sandy-clayed soil.2. A Cretaceous aquifer in marly limestone located between Oum-er-Rbia River and Tnine Chtouka. This aquifer is characterized by a low permeability and a water table generally exceeding 24 m in depth.Monitoring showed that after the heavy rains of 1996 (943 mm, with infiltration of 142 mm), the water table rose markedly in all study wells and a lagged dilution (3 to 6 months) was noted for all mineral salts dissolved in water. In fact, the water table, which had dropped between 1971 and 1995 (10 m in the costal sectors and 20 m in the others parts of the studied region), rose by an average 4.5 to 12.5 m in the central and up-gradient parts of the plain. Several factors were at work between 1971 and 1995: decreased pumping times (about 15 minutes) combined with sharp decreases in the thickness of the saturated zone; appearance of a closed piezometric level in the western region between Oum-er-Rbia River and Tnine Chtouka; and desiccation of 59 wells. With the aid of a polynomial model, annual level evolution of the five coastal test piezometers showed correlation factors of 0.76 to 0.93 respectively for years 1996 and 1997. Other quantitative effects of exceptional rains on groundwater identified include: increased pumping time (up from less than 15 minutes prior to the heavy rains of 1996); increased saturated zone thickness; rises in the water-table surpassing former sea-level heights in certain wells ; general advancement of the piezometric levels towards the coastline; and increased aquifer thickness stemming from longer pumping times.In terms of quality, groundwater showed gradually increasing salinity (by a factor of 2) between 1971 and 1995 and significant improvements after the rains of 1996. Between 1971 and 1995, increased mineralization was observed mainly in coastal and eastern parts of the aquifer between Tnine Chtouka and Bir Jdid. Conductivity of the waters in some coastal wells increased from 5 mS/cm to more than 10 mS/cm. After the exceptional rains of 1996, differences ranging from 0.5 to more than 4 mS/cm were observed in 71 % of the 179 wells analysed. Over the same period, chloride concentrations decreased by average values ranging from 150 to 500 mg/l (higher decreases surpassed 1000 mg/l). By contrast, spatial distributions of conductivity and of the main mineral salts remained unchanged and coastal and eastern groundwaters were still the most vulnerable to high salinity.The quantitative and qualitative effects of heavy rain point to the high sensitivity of these groundwaters to rain input, which is the principal recharge source of the studied aquifer.

Keywords: Aquifère côtier, salinité, piézométrie, pollution, recharge, zone semi-aride, Maroc, Coastal aquifer, Salinity, Piezometric level, Pollution, Recharge, Semi-arid zone, Morocco

AbstractFor some years now, writers in a number of fields have been affirming that paternal commitment needs to be facilitated by making available social services that are adapted to the needs of fathers. Although the paternal role has become much clearer, researchers and many clinical practitioners remain far from convinced of the usefulness of the father in the equation. Given the issues linking this problematic to that of child protection, the present paper is focused on the following question: «To what extent do the various intervenors involve the father in child protection practices?». To answer this question, in this paper I will first chart available empirical data on the extent to which services are made available to fathers, stressing the specific context of child protection. I will then present and discuss the results of a survey of 229 practitioners working within the area of child protection.

AbstractThe role of the social worker is decisive in preventing, detecting and dealing with child neglect and psychological abuse. One of the difficulties when facing a group with cultic drifts consists in identifying and integrating the particular features of this context, so as to avoid methodological errors which might cover up, complexity or otherwise worsen the situation. The social worker has to point out factually, according to a methodologically flawless socio-educational evaluation, the danger, neglect or abuse with which the child is confronted. Moreover, a cultic drifts context may expose not only the child or the parents, but the professional as well to some form of violence. The subsequent trouble sometimes cause anxiety and a kind of mental confusion to the social workers, who may feel they are losing their professional skills, knowledge or practical experience. To be relevant and efficient, they must avoid the double trap of the religious ground which would prove both fruitless and illegitimate to them. They must look further into assessment methodologies suitable for unusual and fringe contexts, so as to learn how to relate to varying standards, alternative educational norms and perspectives on the parental function, with the risk of erroneous appreciation. Lastly, they will have to consider their own implication. This article tries to identify and present those methodological problems, and then to describe four attitude types among social workers coping with such situations which may sound unusual and disturbing to them.

The approriate object of study for the discipline of criminology has always been the subject of debate. In the francophone literature the discipline has historically been divided into two paradigms – the etiology of the act and its social construction – but in recent years new theories of transgressive behaviour have emerged. This article argues that research on white-collar crime has enriched the science of criminology by investigating the unclear boundaries between lawful and unlawful conduct and suggesting new ways to respond to transgressions. The article concludes by exploring the heuristic value of the concept of “illegalism” developed by Michel Foucault, which makes it possible to combine analysis of transgressive behaviors and the social responses to these behaviors, thereby overcoming Alvaro Pires' objection of paradox.

Keywords: Criminalité en col blanc, zémiologie, paradigme des interrelations sociales, nouvelle criminologie culturaliste, illégalismes, White collar crime, social harm, social interrelations paradigm, cultural criminology, illegalism, Criminalidad de cuello blanco, daño social, paradigma de las interrelaciones sociales, nueva criminología culturalista, ilegalismos

Mario Bunge has recently retired from academic life at the venerable age of 90 years old. After more than sixty years of teaching physics and philosophy, he leaves a rich and abundant work. His unique style allies quickness and precision. His method draws from the vast realm of sciences, from physics to sociology. He thus follows the Enlightenment's heritage that advocated a faith in reason and a kind of realism and materialism, which Bunge reorganizes from the study of modern sciences. Few philosophers since Leibniz or Russell have shown this kind of scientific erudition. No doubt that he deserves a prominent role in the contemporary debates in philosophy of sciences.

Political theorists often attribute to Claude Lefort a unique concept of democracy, relying on a re-interpretation of law that rejects both liberal individualism and Marxism's anti-legalism. Although this reflection has had an audience in the 1980s, it was largely ignored by subsequent efforts to expose the “co-originarity” (Habermas) of democratic politics and fundamental rights. As this article will argue, this was partly due to the peculiar political and intellectual context then prevailing in France, but also and above all to an intrinsic difficulty in the way Lefort approaches the very nature of “law.” He tries to combine two perspectives on law (law as a medium and law as institution) that are not wholly congruent, although both imbue his concept of democracy. As a result, his ideas on law are always wavering between an agonistic register, inspired by Machiavellian politics, and a “liberal” register, focusing on law's formalism and “disincorporatedness.” It is precisely on this point that Lefort's thought seems somewhat incomplete and ambiguous.

This article examines a specific area of the politics of sexuality, focusing on the eugenic measures that various liberal democracies applied from the 1920s to the 1960s. More precisely, the policy trajectories of measures such as eugenic sterilizations in Switzerland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom will serve as a basis for theorizing the role of the state in regulating and policing the reproductive sexuality, sexual practices, and sexual identities of its citizens. Exploring the links between sexuality, politics, and the state will lead me to argue that the notion of the state itself needs unpacking. I will suggest, firstly, that examples of concrete eugenic measures demonstrate that states have not always acted in coherent, homogeneous ways in this area. State intervention in this domain was at times non-systematic, or even contradictory. I will argue, secondly, that eugenic measures were developed both within, and outside of (or even against), the state. Paragovernmental actors such as psychiatric clinics or local authorities have often played key roles in the eugenic regulation of sexuality. Furthermore, key actors in the application of eugenic sterilizations, such as doctors' organizations, were in some cases politically opposed to policy-making in this area, since they considered state intervention as a threat to their own autonomy of action. The presence or absence of official state policies is therefore an insufficient indicator of the importance of eugenic practices in specific national contexts, I shall argue. In order to fully grasp the complexity of such political dynamics, it is crucial to take into account the ways in which state institutions and policy-making are structured by wider social relations of power around sexualities, as well as around other identity-markers such as gender, “race,” social class or disabilities.