Law littoral

The Loi Littoral is a French Loi which aims at framing the installation of the coast to protect it from excesses of the real estate speculation. This law was voted unanimously by the French Parlement in 1986 and is coming into effect the January 3rd 1986, date of its publication to the Official journal. The law comprises a set of measures relating to the protection and the installation of the Littoral and interior water levels most important. It is codified in the articles with Code of town planning.

In 2005, the Minister for the Equipment made vote a law which returns partly on the device set up.

History

August 1st (in the course of drafting)

Former laws

August 1st

Context

August 1st

Contents of the law

Sought-after goals

The goals are indicated to the article first (L321-1 of the code of the environment) and reflect a will of sustainable development well:

Innovation : " the implementation of an research effort and innovation relating to the characteristics and the resources of the littoral" ;

Safeguarding of the environment : " the protection of biological and ecological balances, the fight against erosion, the safeguarding of the sites and landscapes and the patrimoine" ;

Perenniality of a watery economy : " the safeguarding and the development of the economic activities related to the proximity of water, such as fishing, cultures marine, naval port activities, construction and repair and maritimes" transport; ;

Perenniality of a nonwatery economy : " the maintenance or the development, in the littoral zone, of the forestry agricultural activities or, industry, the craft industry and the tourisme".

Field of application

Under the articles and Code of the environment “are regarded as littoral communes the communes of metropolis and the overseas departments bordering of the seas and oceans, of the salted ponds, the interior water levels of a surface higher than 1.000 hectares. ” but also those stated by the R.321-1 article of the code.

Consequences

This law applies as well to the decisions of installation of the State (Territorial Directives of Installation, Projets of General interest, Protection plans and of Development of the Sea) as with the local orientations of installation (Schémas of Territorial Coherence, Local plans of Town planning, Communal Cartes, communes without document of town planning)…

Protection of remarkable spaces

The law littoral makes obligation with the public actors of town planning to protect remarkable natural spaces. In practice, the law constrained communes to declare the inconstructibility of these spaces: a commune which would not respect this objective is likely to see its Local plan of cancelled Town planning.

Control urbanization

The law prohibits any new construction with less than 100 meters of the shore apart from the residential areas.

Realization of new ways framed

August 1st

Littoral future of the law

A mitigated assessment

Wednesday, October 10, 2007, Mrs. Nathalie Kosciusco-Morizet, Secretary of State in charge of Ecology, presented a assessment of the law " littoral and of measurements in favor of the littoral whereas the Government transmitted to the Parliament the report/ratio on the application of this law. The aspects “ installation ” and “ development ” of the law bore their fruits (“ the attractivity residential, economic and tourist of the littoral strongly accelerated”; with more than one half-million of additional inhabitants of 1986 to 2006 (+ 530.000 inhabitants, according to the report/ratio), but the protection measures of the natural environments made it possible only to slow down the expansion of the Urbanisation, the Périurbanisation and the ecological Fragmentation of the territory. The report/ratio notes that this law has very an good image in the population: 94% of the French are in 2007 favorable to the principle of a law governing in particular the littoral, 53% estimate that the state of the littoral improved in 20 years. The report/ratio points out also the importance of the purchases of the Conservatoire of littoral space and the lake shores which could in 20 years acquire 67.000 hectares (out of 102.000 to protect).

The report/ratio quotes in example the first marine surfaces protected in the form of the first Natural marine park created on September 28th 2007 in Mer of Iroise, it promotes to increase the fight against the “ diffuse pollution of terrestrial origin ” and a better coherence between the management of the back-country and immediate coastal spaces, via SCOT in particular.

The law littoral called into question?

August 1st

Notes and references of the article

Random links: