From November 14 to 28, 2021, Walid, Raja, Seifeddine, Chloé, Zoé, Matthieu, Nabil, Bastien, Giovanni Luca, Antoine and Loïc, from Italy, France and Tunisia, aged 18 to 30, were welcomed to RESMYLE workshop in Malemort du Comtat (Vaucluse - France) with the aim of introducing them and the local population to the region's ancient water routes.

Malemort du Comtat, located at the foot of the Monts de Vaucluse and Mont Ventoux, has been directly irrigated by mountain runoff for thousands of years, protecting the foothills from drought. Over the centuries, however, the local population has also ingeniously channeled and stored this precious summer water, creating drainage tunnels, cisterns, fountains and washhouses, and terracing the hillsides to limit runoff and soil erosion. However, since the end of the 19th century and the construction of the Canal de Carpentras, all irrigation on the Malemort plain has been carried out using water from the Durance, leading to the abandonment of small hydraulic works, many of which are now in ruins. However, current global warming should lead the population to rehabilitate and reactivate these structures in order to diversify the commune's water supply.

With this in mind, the OPUS association decided to promote the old water routes to the young people at the RESMYLE Field Training Workshop.

Over the course of 15 days, the young people discovered the different types of hydraulic structures present in the region, the key role they played, their current state and the methods used to restore them. Among other things, they discovered the Carpentras canal, which crosses the entire region, the traditional agricultural canals, the drainage galleries that supply village fountains and other water collection, storage and conveyance structures. They then put what they had learned into practice:

• Restoration of a rock-cut eyrie, with an introduction to traditional dry-stone masonry and lime plastering,
• By carrying out a survey among local residents about the area's water-related heritage,
• By creating explanatory panels for the aiguiers trail.

The participants presented their work to the local population at a public event.

OPUS, a Euro-Mediterranean association based in Provence and accredited by the CPIE des Pays de Vaucluse (Centre Permanent d'Initiatives pour l'Environnement), offers a wide range of activities linked to heritage enhancement and environmental protection. It is one of the French partners in the RESMYLE project.