Definitions of green and blue infrastructure

Green and blue infrastructure (TVB) is a network of the land and water ecological continuities identified by the SRCEs and planning documents produced by the French government, local authorities and groups of authorities.

This green and blue network contributes to improving the conservation status of natural habitats and species and achieving GES for water bodies. It applies to all French territory except the marine environment.

• ECOLOGICAL CONTINUITIES

The ecological continuities comprising the TVB include core areas of high biodiversity value and ecological corridors connecting them.

• CORE AREAS OF BIODIVERSITY

Core areas of biodiversity act as reservoirs where biodiversity is richest or best represented, species can complete all or part of their life cycle and natural habitats can function properly, which amongst other things means being sufficiently large. They are home to core species populations from which individuals can disperse or which are able to accommodate new populations of species.

Reservoirs of biodiversity include all or part of those protected areas and natural areas that are important to biodiversity conservation.

• ECOLOGICAL CORRIDORS

Ecological corridors are passages between reservoirs of biodiversity, providing species with favourable conditions for moving from place to place and completing their life cycle. They can be linear, discontinuous or landscaped.

Ecological corridors include natural and semi-natural areas as well as linear or isolated strips of vegetation that provide connectivity between reservoirs of biodiversity.

• WATERCOURSES AND WETLANDS

Watercourses, parts of watercourses and canals that are important to biodiversity conservation are both reservoirs of biodiversity and ecological corridors.

Wetlands that are important to biodiversity conservation act as reservoirs of biodiversity and/or ecological corridors.