At the French Mayors' Congress, land artificialisation is a hot topic of debate

Highlighted by the deadly floods in Valencia, Spain, as a key factor in worsening risks, the ravages of land artificialisation are no longer really a subject of debate among mayors. However, the French Minister for the Partnership with the Territories, Catherine Vautrin, came to remind them of this. "From 2009 to 2022, we will have consumed 24,000 hectares of natural, agricultural and forested areas every year in France. (...) In twenty years, the artificialization of soils has increased four times more than our demography", she emphasized at the opening plenary session.