In the commune of Lens (62), the urban forest project has been taking shape since September 2021. This project, led by EPF Hauts-de-France, also involves the City of Lens and the Lens-Liévin Conurbation Community, in conjunction with the Hauts-de-France Region through the Regional Forestry Plan. EPF Hauts-de-France is represented by Guillaume Lemoine, in charge of development and biodiversity/ecological engineering.

Tell us about EPF Hauts-de-France?

EPF Nord-Pas-de-Calais was set up in 1990 to redevelop mining and industrial wastelands. The region was hard hit by the coal, metal and textile crises. A state-owned public institution, it implements a policy shared by the State and the Region. Its action to restore the living environment and promote urban renewal is based on 7 major priorities:

• development of land for housing,
• support for major regional economic projects,
• strengthening central areas,
• improving the living environment and biodiversity,
• natural and technological risk management.

In August 2021, it will become EPF Hauts-de-France.

Can you tell us about the Van Pelt wasteland and its redevelopment project?

These were abandoned factories and buildings on the outskirts of town. EPF Hauts-de-France deconstructed the site. Then to recycle demolition materials and treat concentrated soil pollution. The order from the town of Lens was to restore value to this space on the edge of the mining bypass. Creating an urban forest on this wasteland is part of the Region’s Reforestation Plan to combat climate change. This renaturation will also form part of the Chaîne des Parcs, a vast metropolitan project.

Why a project with ECT?

When the EPF is awarded the project, the budget is limited. And right from the start, the reuse of fill and the circular economy of soil from construction sites were mentioned. To create this urban forest, the EPF organized a Call for Expressions of Interest. ECT responded, and the project took shape in a highly collaborative dynamic.