Réserve naturelle régionale du marais de Condette, Regional nature reserve in Condette, France.
The Réserve naturelle régionale du marais de Condette covers 35 hectares around the Lac des Miroirs, between the forests of Écault and Hardelot in Pas-de-Calais. It combines open wet meadows, peat bogs and woodlands of varying density. A dirt and gravel path crosses a narrow channel on a low wooden footbridge with two horizontal railings on dark posts; ducks rest on the grass beside the water.
In 1894 the departmental archivist asked that the marsh and pasture records of Condette be deposited in the departmental archives, calling them too important for the commune to be left loose in a corner of the town hall. The site later served as a leisure base before works costing 1.5 million euros between 2005 and 2008 restored its early 19th-century natural appearance, adding oak footpaths and information panels. It was classified as a regional nature reserve by a deliberation of 25 May 2009 and received the "prix de la biodiversité en milieu urbanisé" from the ministry of sustainable development in February 2012.
The name Marais de Condette is used by the local tourist office for the walking trails around the Lac des Miroirs. Since 2005 the site has been fitted with oak-wood footpaths and information panels on its history, geomorphology, fauna and flora, and in February 2012 it received the ministry's "prix de la biodiversité en milieu urbanisé".
Part of the reserve is laid out for free pedestrian walking all year and serves as an environmental education resource. Paths were adapted for wheelchair users and the visually impaired, with the site intended for "Tourisme et Handicap" certification. Wooden oak walkways and information panels on the site's history, geomorphology, fauna and flora were installed during 2005-2008 works.
The marsh's peat holds a bank of old seeds, which Eden 62, the manager, cites as a reserve for the habitat under climate change; the peat is also a natural carbon sink. The site limits flooding downstream as a flood-expansion zone.
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