The 2024 Ecological Engineering Awards were presented as part of the first Biodiversity and Ecological Engineering Exhibition, which took place from November 19 to 21 in Paris.
Since 2014, the Association of Actors in Ecological Engineering and Engineering (A-IGÉco) has organized the National Prize for Ecological Engineering every two years in partnership with the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB) and the Ministry of Environmental Protection. Ecological transition. For this 5th edition, A-IGÉco has joined forces with Plante & Cité to award a prize dedicated to ecological engineering in urban environments.
More numerous and more qualitative files
The organizers highlighted a significant increase in the number of applications for this fifth edition: 58 applications were submitted, compared to 38 in 2020 and 18 in 2022.
These files also stood out for their quality. “ A long road has been coveredsupported Gaël Thevenot, deputy director “actors and citizens” within the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB). While some categories did not find winners in previous years, this year we have co-winners. This had never happened! ».
The “experimentation and applied research” prize was also added to reward thriving initiatives in ecological engineering.
Nine distinguished projects:
The winners of this fifth edition are:
– Environmental restoration price
Winner: Panesière stream and marsh restoration project
In order to restore the functionality of wetlands (storage and restitution of water, water purification and biodiversity reservoir), work was undertaken by the Jura Departmental Federation of Hunters to reopen the marsh and remeander the river course. water.
– Price for improving ecological continuities
Two initiatives were distinguished.
1 – the project to restore the ecological functions of the Nivelle in Ainhoa
The Nivelle is a small coastal and cross-border river in the Basque Country, the functioning of which was disrupted by the dam of a former fish farm, abandoned since 2012. The work aims to: remove the diversion threshold to decompartmentalize the entire upper Nivelle and its tributaries, the hydromorphological restoration of the section, the reconstitution of an alluvial mattress conducive to fish spawning and the development of invertebrates, the dewatering of more of 1000 m² of concrete surfaces along the river, and finally, the dismantling of the old abandoned basins, the canal and an asbestos hangar which threatens to collapse into the Nivelle.
2 – the project to restore the ecological continuity and hydromorphology of the Vitardière stream, in Seine-Maritime.
The Vitardière stream was diverted several hundred years ago to supply water to now abandoned mills. This action had numerous impacts on the environment: siltation, flooding, disappearance of areas favorable to fish feeding and reproduction, hindrance to the movement of migratory fish, etc. Thanks to the agreement of owners and farmers, the stream was able to return to its natural bed and regain its ecological and hydraulic functionalities, after several months of work.
– Price for improving ecological continuities
Winner: hydromorphological restoration project of the Haudricourt stream hydromorphological restoration project of the Haudricourt stream
The Vitardière stream is a small tributary of the Bresle, a 72 km long coastal river located north of the Normandy arc. The watercourse was impacted by the presence of hydraulic structures and old diversions, which degraded its morphology. The restoration work has enabled the watercourse to regain its role as a biological reservoir for fragile species (white-footed crayfish, brown trout, invertebrates, macrophytes) and as a useful thermal refuge zone in the context of climate change.
– Prize for management practices favorable to biodiversity
Winner: integrated project for the restoration of natural environments in Reunion Island
The project, led by the Réunion National Park and the Center for International Cooperation in Agricultural Research for Development (CIRAD), aims to reverse the trend towards loss of biodiversity on the island of Réunion, facing particularly to the pressure of plant invasions. The specificity of its management practice lies in the implementation of a partnership between different key players in the territory, around a dedicated Research & Development unit, in order to carry out coordinated and sized actions on a company-wide scale. island.
– Price for improving the services provided by ecosystems and soils
Winner: environmental restoration project for the Yzeron River in an urban area, in Sainte Foy-lès-Lyon.
Started in the summer of 2018, the initiative aims to widen the Yzeron, a watercourse recalibrated in the 1970s to allow the construction of a dual carriageway. This action, however, led to significant excesses.
– Special jury prize
Winner: School site as part of the Protéger – Phase 2 project, in Guadeloupe.
This project, headed by the Guadeloupe National Park, aims to preserve the biodiversity of Guadeloupe's aquatic environments, while protecting the population from the risks incurred during river floods or cyclonic events, through the use of engineering techniques. vegetal. Phase 1 concerned the study of riparian forests and the definition of local species to be used in plant engineering. The objective of phase 2 was the more precise characterization of species and a definition of ecological engineering techniques usable on the banks of river courses. water from Guadeloupe.
– Experimentation and applied research prize
Winner: REEVES Program (Research on Invasive Exotic Plant Species)
Led by SNCF Réseau, the Research program on Invasive Exotic Plant Species (REEVES) aims to formulate a new solution for managing invasive species present on railway rights-of-way using the natural mechanisms of plant competition.
– Special price in urban areas
Winner: Sente des Rivières garden park, in Normandy
The project to develop the Sente des Rivières garden park, supported by the town of Montivilliers, consists of restoring an old wetland and developing an area of approximately 30,000 m². In particular, the revegetation of the wetland area, the creation of allotment gardens and vegetable gardens, and the establishment of a green, blue and black framework were carried out.
Grand Prix
Winner: Isère Amont integrated development project
Launched in 2004, the Isère upstream project extends over 29 municipalities in Isère between Pontcharra and Grenoble. The objective is to give space to Isère to fight against flooding. Several developments have been carried out: leveling of benches, creation of deposit beaches, reconnection of dead arms (lônes), such as the Pré Pichat dead arm. This work also made it possible to restore fish continuity between Isère and its tributaries.
