A mangrove on Europa Island, French territory in the Indian Ocean.

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SOPHIE LAUTIER / AFP

The government on Monday specified its strategy to increase the share of protected areas in France by 2030, by listing current or future projects.

The outlines of this strategy were published last Tuesday.

The 2021-2023 action plan specifies how it will be applied.

It aims in particular to protect at least 30% of French land and seas from 2022, via a multitude of possible tools: national and regional parks, Natura 2000, coastal conservation, etc. This plan confirms the creation of four new regional natural parks: Picardie maritime-Baie de Somme, Mont Ventoux (created in 2020), Corbières-Fenouillèdes and Doubs Horloger.

Strong protection in certain areas

It also plans by 2022 to "extend the nature reserve of southern French lands to all the marine waters of Crozet, Kerguelen and Saint-Paul and Amsterdam", to "transform the natural marine park of Glorieuses (Indian Ocean) in a national nature reserve ”and“ to complete the network of protected areas in the (islands) Scattered ”(Indian Ocean).

Some 10% of the territory will be in "strong protection", against 1.8% today, that is to say areas where "the pressures generated by human activities likely to compromise the conservation of the ecological issues of this space are eliminated or significantly limited, and this in a sustainable manner ”.

Guyana particularly concerned

To achieve this objective, the government is counting on the extension or creation of 20 national nature reserves, "in particular the Glorieuses national nature reserve and that of the forests of the mountains and ridges of Mayotte", strong protection areas in the Glorious Islands. and Les Eparses, 250,000 hectares of protected forest, "including 180,000 hectares in Guyana (by the creation of two biological reserves) and 70,000 hectares in mainland France".

It is also counting on the extension of the protected area of ​​the coastal conservatory (6,000 hectares), wants to "strengthen the protection of threatened natural habitats in Guyana" or "protect 75% of coral reefs overseas".

Scientists and NGOs pay particular attention to the areas where protected areas are located, so that they protect the most fragile ecosystems, and the level of protection applied.

According to a CRNS study, in the case of marine protected areas, the objective of 30% protection has been achieved, but "only 1.6% of the French maritime area enjoys full or high protection status".

"80% of this high or full protection is concentrated in a territory, the French southern and Antarctic lands", a figure which climbs to more than 97% with New Caledonia.

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