Action research in a participatory spatial planning process. The SCOT de Thau (France)
Recherche-action dans un processus de planification territoriale participative. Le SCOT de Thau (France)
Résumé
Regional and urban planning in France tends to be more distributed due to the decentralisation process but also more integrated and more participative. This is the case for coastal areas where a new type of integrated planning approach start to be experimented on several test areas, including the Thau territory. This area is subject to high pressures which generate numerous conflicts. To cope with these issues, new urban and water planning documents based on a sustainable development project are currently elaborated in a participatory way. Our research teams are supporting the leading institution to organise and evaluate the participatory process. In this paper, the context of the Thau territory is presented after a brief overview of spatial planning in France. Then, emphasis is put on the participatory process itself as well as on tools and methods that are used to support it. Yet the evaluation of this process is discussed.