After a scientific baccalaureate and two years of BCPST preparatory class, Valère joined the National School of Rural Engineering, Water and Forestry in Nancy to pursue training as a forestry engineer.
After completing his studies, he undertook a civil service placement providing technical assistance to the Kerguelen Islands, then became a wildlife project manager at the Regional Directorate for the Environment in Orléans. He then continued his career in Rennes, within the DREAL Bretagne (Regional Directorate for the Environment, Planning and Housing of Brittany), as a Natura 2000 project manager.
In 2012, he joined the National Forestry Office and the Aigoual massif, where he took responsibility for a territorial unit.
Find Valère in our South Cévennes destination magazine, Wild Encounter issue no. 6
What are the main missions of the ONF on the Aigoual massif?
The ONF's main mission on Mont Aigoual is to manage public forests, whether state-owned or communal, in a way that is both sustainable and multifunctional. Sustainable, because it spans several decades and relies primarily on the natural regeneration of the stands.
Multifunctional, because public forests are intended to: produce wood to supply the timber industry, protect water resources, biodiversity, soils, landscape diversity, and finally welcome the public and the many outdoor activities that are practiced, in compliance with regulations and protection issues.
How do you reconcile forest production, biodiversity and natural hazard prevention?
The reconciliation between forest production and the preservation of biodiversity relies on silvicultural practices that favour natural regeneration, the diversity of species and uneven stands, as well as on specific protection measures such as biological reserves, senescence islands or the conservation of habitat trees.
It also relies on precautions during mining operations: specific clauses relating to the conservation of waterways and wetlands, quiet periods in the event of reproduction of certain heritage bird species, for example.
The partnership we have with the Cévennes National Park, which involves rangers visiting the forest plots planned in the annual logging program, allows us to refine the ecological issues and take them into account as best as possible during logging operations.
Regarding natural hazards, avoiding clear-cutting, except in very rare cases, helps protect us against the risk of erosion. Concerning fire risk, and given that 93% of fires are caused by humans, the main challenge is to secure roadsides and the areas surrounding homes through appropriate measures, specifically compliance with legal brush clearing obligations (OLD) by landowners and road maintenance services.
What major projects are currently underway or planned?
Regarding the renewal of stands, the pressure from large deer and climate change lead us to conduct some experiments to promote and diversify forest regeneration.
Regarding welcoming the public, we participate in discussions led by all stakeholders in the area, whether in support or as project leaders, such as the accessible trail in Puéchagut and the redevelopment of the Hort de Dieu site.
These various actions are notably included in the Aigoual Forêt d'Exception initiative, which I have had the pleasure of leading on the massif since 2013.
What measures are you putting in place to limit the impact of tourism on fragile environments?
In the case of fragile environments or species that may be disturbed (especially during the breeding period), the main challenge is to 'channel' visitor numbers, so that the vast majority of visitors stay on the marked routes.
More specifically, reflections are being carried out on the massif, in particular with the support of the Cévennes National Park: the protection of the summit grasslands of Aigoual to limit their over-trampling, and the implementation of measures aimed at reducing disturbance during the deer rutting season across the entire massif.
What priorities or challenges do you see for the Aigoual Territorial Unit in the next 5 to 10 years?
Adapting forest management to climate change is essential! While we already know that spruce will disappear from the forest, we are closely monitoring the decline and weakening of the two other most important tree species: silver fir and beech. And as mentioned earlier, we are conducting some experiments to promote and diversify forest regeneration.
Other challenges include restoring the balance between forestry and hunting (to achieve abundant and high-quality natural regeneration), responding to local demands for wood (construction timber, energy wood), taking into account the evolution and diversification of outdoor activities, and of course, communicating about all these forest management issues to local stakeholders, schools, and the general public.
We have very little time available for these mediation activities. Yet these are essential and we strive to respond to them, through the occasional hosting of student groups in the forest and then, in partnership with the Cévennes National Park, through the hosting of middle and high school students on the 'marteloscope' device, next to the lake of Pises, to raise their awareness and introduce them to the issues of forest management.
