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An urban forest grows on the banks of the Lot, in Cahors

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Once the old dairy on the Plaine du Pal has been demolished, the town of Cahors is in the process of planting an urban forest on this site on the banks of the Lot. An investment for the future.

Urban forest. These are two words that, at first glance, do not go together. Yet this is what grows in Cahors, plain of Pal. Ultimately, more than 1,500 trees and shrubs will flourish on this former 10,000 m2 wasteland between the road, Lot and ramparts.

Decompacted soils

Back to the project. In 2014, the city purchased the wasteland of the former dairy. The old trees have been preserved. Last year, she had the building destroyed. “On everything that was the site of the old dairy, we ground and crushed the soil because it was not possible to plant there as it was,” explains Anne-Céline Daporta, municipal councilor delegated to nature in the city. A tedious job but which allowed the town hall to save on transport and landfill. The budget reaches €170,000.

Next step: add topsoil. Then it’s time for the plantations. The species were chosen according to several criteria: variety to avoid the spread of diseases, different sizes, spread flowering and resistance to heat.

Fight against the harmful effects of global warming

Because it is climate change that led to the birth of the project. More precisely, the fight against its harmful effects as well as the storage of greenhouse gases. “Forests are a huge carbon sink, second only to the oceans. In Cahors, we cannot work too much on the oceans,” smiles the elected official. Other objectives of what is an element of the renovation of this district: to compensate for the artificialization of the soil and to bring back biodiversity.

In June, high school students in management of natural environments and wildlife from Montat came to take an inventory of local species. And, as part of a school project, they also help municipal teams with planting. The first took place in February: 335 trees and shrubs which “took off well”, rejoices Anne-Céline Daporta. “There, we have prepared the land for Toussaint,” she continues, “and there will be another wave of planting in mid-December.”

A mid-December planting

700 trees and 300 shrubs will be installed: 180 oaks of five different varieties, Scots pines, lime trees, cherry trees, etc. A third, minor phase will take place in 2025. These young plants are planted very closely together using a Japanese technique which encourages them to grow faster.

But let the Cadurcians not imagine a new place for walks: the forest “will not be intended to be open to crossing. That's why we have created paths around it”, explains the elected official. This educational path will be enriched with the information collected by the high school students. A grassy meadow will be preserved for possible projects and to provide a view of the ramparts. “In two to three years, imagine the elected official, it will look like something.”

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