For 20 years a series of multi-year plans have guided management of the Loire River basin. Generally, each "Plan Loire Grandeur Nature" has concentrated on flood control, restoration of natural habitats, and tourism. (Persuading UNESCO to designate the central Loire with all of its chateaux as a “World Heritage Site” was a project in one of the early plans.)
The fourth plan, due to run from 2015 through 2020, has been adopted, but France’s recent territorial reforms could end up undermining part of its funding. Europe committed 33 million euros under its program for regional development back in November of last year.
But the domestic commitment is more complicated. Plan funding comes from the national government, the regions within the Loire basin, and in some cases individual departments. Funding commitments are currently being negotiated through a process leading to a contract between the regions and the national government ("Contrat de plan interrégional État-Région" (CPIER)).
The problem for the 2015-2020 Plan is that over the next year regional, and in some cases departmental, organizational arrangements are being reshuffled following Paris’ decision to reduce the number of regions from 22 to 13. For the regions and departments it’s hard to commit to funding a six-year plan when you’re not sure what your own finances will be a year from now.
