Public intervention on behalf of the natural areas patrimony: used instruments and state of implementation in metropolitan France

Abstract

Facing with the complexity of the ecosystems, what contents can be given to the actions for the protection of the natural spaces patrimony ? This article makes the inventory of the various instruments aiming at protecting this patrimony in France, then analyzes the results of their implementation on the metropolitan territory. It shows that most of these instruments concern only a limited part of the territory, and that the range of the mobilized instruments varies strongly according to the region considered. It reveals a complex organization of the local action and invites to consider not only the specific action of each instrument, but also the emergence of a superior level of organization.