The Herbe Moselle plan, launched in the territories of Sarrebourg, Phalsbourg and Saulnois, protects natural meadows essential to the ecosystem and supports sustainable livestock farming, involving communities and agricultural stakeholders.
The importance of grasslands for the environment
Grasslands play a crucial role as natural infrastructure, contributing to the management of diffuse pollution, the preservation of biodiversity and support in the face of climate change. These spaces, true ecological allies, also facilitate the management of floods and low water levels.
However, the gradual disappearance of these meadows is alarming: more than a third of the permanent meadows of the Rhine-Meuse basin, encompassing Alsace, Lorraine and Champagne-Ardenne, have been destroyed since the 1970s.
A strategic response to protect grasslands
Faced with this situation, the basin committee implemented the Herbe Moselle plan. This initiative aims to strengthen grass-fed farming, the only way to develop these meadows in a sustainable manner. The plan is based on territorial objectives shared between communities, ranging from the protection of water resources to the prevention of flooding. All stakeholders in the agricultural world, cooperatives, agri-food industries and environmental associations, are mobilized to support this approach.
Support for sustainable agricultural practices
The Herbe plan is implemented through various measures: investments in grassland management equipment, creation of sectors and support for changes in agricultural practices, in particular via payments for environmental services. Territorial coordination and support for specific sectors such as the dairy sector are also essential to ensure the economic and ecological viability of this strategy.
