Pyrenees Guide

Created in 1967, the Pyrenees National Park is made up of two zones: The central zone (45705 hectars) is almost uninhabited and is subject to reinforced protection. It is in this area that the most spectacular landscapes are to be seen and t he peripheral area is a kind of pre-park on the edge of the central zone. It has 86 villages and 40000 inhabitants. Help towards local development is the National Park's policy in this area.

The Pyrenees National Park promove various objectives: Preserving biodiversity, landscapes and sites; welcoming visitors and showing them how to respect and make the most of this heritage; reconciling environmental protection and economic activities and contributing to the longlasting development of the valleys.

In order to ensure efficient protection it is essential to know the area well a number of studies are led on the terrain by the National Park wardens: inventories of animal and plant species, and observation of their habits and evolution, analyses of their geographical distribution and climatic studies. Such activities enable the Pyrenees National Park to develop appropriate management of the environment.