Grenelle Environnement

The Grenelle de l'environnement was an open multi-party debate that took place in France in the summer and fall of 2007 to define key points of public policy on environmental and sustainable development over the following five-year period.

Officially launched on 6 July 2007, the Grenelle de l'environnement brought together the government, local authorities, trade unions, business and volunteer sectors to draw up a plan of action of concrete measures to tackle environmental issues.

Six working groups, composed of representatives of the central government, local governments, employer organizations and trade unions and NGOs, first gathered to debate the topics of climate change and energy, biodiversity and natural resources, health and the environment, production and consumption of ecological democracy, development patterns and environmental employment and competitiveness.

The Grenelle working groups set ambitious goals in numerous areas: biodiversity and natural resources, climate change, relations between the environment and public health, modes of production and consumption, issues of "environmental governance" and "ecological democracy", the promotion of sustainable patterns of development favorable to competitiveness and employment, genetically modified organisms (GMOs), waste management.

This text, known as "First Grenelle Act", sets the general policy and describes the choices made while not specifying their practical implementation or funding.

Investments in renewable energy should also generate additional revenue (for example, 75% of expenditures to rehabilitate public buildings would be financed by the savings on reduced consumption).