Early Conservation Efforts: Forests and Waters

The Forest Ordinance of 1669

One of the earliest systematic conservation efforts in France was the Forest Ordinance of 1669, issued under Louis XIV and his minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert. This comprehensive law established state control over forest management, driven primarily by the need to ensure timber supplies for naval construction. While its motivations were strategic rather than ecological, the ordinance introduced principles of sustainable forest management that would influence conservation thinking for centuries.

The ordinance created the Administration of Waters and Forests (Administration des Eaux et Forêts), establishing a professional corps of foresters who developed scientific approaches to woodland management. Their work laid foundations for modern silviculture, though their focus remained firmly on forests as economic resources rather than ecosystems deserving protection for their own sake.

Napoleon III and the Great Reforestation

The mid-19th century saw one of Europe's most ambitious environmental restoration projects. Following devastating floods in 1856, Napoleon III initiated a massive reforestation program in the Alps and Pyrenees. The Restauration des Terrains en Montagne (RTM) aimed to stabilize eroding mountainsides through tree planting.

Between 1860 and 1914, over 200,000 hectares were reforested, primarily with conifers. While successful in reducing erosion and flooding, the program also had unintended consequences. The emphasis on fast-growing species altered mountain ecosystems, and the displacement of pastoral communities—whose grazing practices were blamed for deforestation—raised early questions about environmental justice that resonate today.