Water Resilient Cities partnership held the second of its network meetings in the picturesque location of Condette, near Boulogne-sur-Mer in northern France. Over 70 participants - from France, UK, Belgium and Netherlands – joined together to explore how to add value to sustainable urban drainage systems to maximise benefits to wildlife, amenity, public health and local economies. Speakers from all four countries presented best practices and technical innovations developed through practical experiences.
In workshop sessions, the experts and stakeholders present reviewed and contributed to the development of plans for the project’s pilot investments across the region. The different perspectives from the different countries and disciplines represented, raised new ideas and opportunities to improve the added value of the schemes.
Co-hosts of the meeting – Commune de Condette, BDCO (Boulogne-sur-Mer Développement Côte d’Opale) and SYMSAGEB (Syndicat mixte pour le schéma d’aménagement et de gestion des eaux du Boulonnais) – were very encouraged at the level of interest from French experts and stakeholders and hope that the event will represent the catalyst for an on-going dialogue in the region regarding sustainable drainage and adaptation to climate change.
