The administrative boundaries - The territory - The Park

The National Park stretches over parts of three départements – Lozère, Gard and Ardèche – and two regions, Languedoc-Roussillon and Rhône-Alpes. Its district councils are grouped together into intercommunalités and pays. Making the public policies of these different participants cohere is one of the challenges of the Park’s future Charter.

A territory in three départements

The departement of Lozère hosts the largest part of the Park’s central zone (about 77,000 hectares or 82%). The remaining 18%, on the Aigoual massif and Lingas plateau, are in the Gard.

The membership zone, taken at its greatest possible extent, consists of 152 districts: 75 in the Gard, 67 in Lozère and ten in the Ardèche. Seven out of those ten Ardèche districts belong to the Monts d’Ardèche Regional Nature Reserve. They will have to choose between membership of the Park or the Reserve when the Reserve’s Charter is revised.

In terms of surface area, Lozère has 49% of the maximum-extent membership zone, the Gard 42% and the Ardèche 9%.

A recent inter-district structure

With the exception of precursors such as the Communauté des communes du Pays viganais (an overarching body combining several neighbouring district councils in and around Le Vigan), created in 1993, the grouping of district councils into intercommunalités with their own tax systems really began in 2000.
Today the district councils of the maximum-extent membership zone belong to 26 district council groups and one town district council group. Only half of these intercommunalités lie entirely within the National Park.
The council groupings have mandatory jurisdiction in matters of economic development – especially tourism – and planning, and optional jurisdiction in environmental matters. They are therefore vital participants in implementing the Park’s future Charter and are now represented on its Board of Directors.

The pays

Six pays (large district council groupings) have been created within the Park by the law on orientation, planning and sustainable development of territories. Each has drawn up a development charter for its own territory, charters which therefore pre-date the future Charter of the National Park.
These projects need to be synergised. Drafting the National Park charter provides an occasion for harmonising these different public policies. By taking into account the territories’ specific natures and heritage, it becomes a collaborative project in protection and sustainable development.