[DREAL OCCITANIA] National Parks in Occitania

(ENP) which are designated or managed areas within an international, Community, national or local framework with a view to achieving specific objectives for the conservation of the natural heritage. A national park is a vast terrestrial or marine protected area with exceptional natural, cultural and landscape heritage. Its objectives are the protection and management of biodiversity and cultural heritage, good governance and public reception. A national park is typically composed of two areas: the park heart and an adhesion area. National park cores are defined as the land and/or marine areas to be protected. There is strict regulation and priority is given to the protection of habitats, species, landscapes and heritage. The cores of national parks are part of the protected areas that are primarily part of the strategy for the creation of protected areas. They generally correspond to the IUCN II category. A national park membership area is defined as all or part of the territory of the municipalities which, having been designated to be part of the national park due in particular to their geographical continuity or ecological solidarity with the heart, have decided to accede to the charter of the national park and to voluntarily contribute to that protection. The area of accession is determined by the effective accession of the municipalities (while the decree establishing the national park mentions an optimal area of membership). When the adhesion area is a marine area, it is also designated as the adjacent marine area of the National Park. An area of membership is intended to be an exemplary space for sustainable development.The adhesion areas are classified as IUCN V. Legal references: Articles L.331-1 to L.331-29 and R.331-1 to R.331-85 of the Environmental Code.