Contenu du sommaire : Littoraux en perspectives

The Medjerda Delta (Tunisia) since Ancient Times In northeastern Tunisia, the Gulf of Utica was formed during the postglacial transgression about 6000 years ago. Over time, fluvial deposits from the Medjerda gradually filled up the northern part of the Gulf. The succession of events during historical times has been inferred from ancient documents and ar- cheological evidence. Besides morphological ground observations, aerial and satellite photographs have been used to analyze how the landscape has evolved over the past 3000 years. The Gulfs southern part was filled up in late ancient times. The sea gradually withdrew from the northern part during the Middle Ages and modern times. The Ghar el Melh Lagoon is the last vestige of what used to be the Utica Gulf. Following the last big flood in 1973, the Medjerda shifted, once again, its course. It now flows through a canal originally dug to evacuate the overflow of flood waters.

Social Functions and Subjective Dimensions of the Coast Rather than expounding full results from a completed research project, this preliminary reflexion tries to set the basis and orientations for a major program of surveys to be undertaken in order to understand current perceptions and experiences of the coastal environment. Light can thus be shed on the new mental geography of the coastline : how it is organized in general and structured by a few "high places" endowed with meaning. A genealogical perspective has been adopted. The discovery and construction of the seaboard for nonproductive purposes occurred in three major phases. The conversion of views from the beginning of the contemporary period, the reference to images from the late 19th century and the fusion of uses of the contemporary period that have ended by constituting a common heritage - more mythological than real - wherein everyone takes what he needs.

The Littoral Articulation : A Ritterian Principle Reinterpreted by Elisée Reclus It took a long time for geographers to switch from a mere, terminological description of the coasts, which focused on ports and military aspects, to a reasoned analysis of how the coast is organized. To do this, Elisée Reclus put to use Karl Ritter's "littoral articulation principle". The French coastline serves as an example to show how much the libertarian geographer has managed to adopt this concept while avoiding its systematic determinism. On a small or medium scale, he has emphasized dynamic, physical as well as human, changes on the seaboard. On a big scale, he has tried to shed light on the possibilities that technical progress offers for development ; and he has resorted to the practices of traditional terminologies in order to move beyond them. Opposite Ritterian determinism, he has proposed a dynamic interpretation of coastal areas.

Law and the Coast in Europe Sociologists and geographers have observed, in all lands of the world, a shift of populations and activities from inland toward the seaboard. In Europe, the law increasingly deals with the complexity of this phenomenon while taking into account the fragility of coastal areas. The new mandate for conserving these zones has been interpreted in four ways. At the international level, the notion of integrated coastal management has been developed ; and at the national level, laws have been passed about the seaboard. Everywhere, systems of public domain are being revived ; and private or public appropriations of coastal land for conservation purposes are increasingly common. National laws forbid building in certain zones and set aside areas of ecological interest.

Bastions of the Sea Attacks came from the sea. The Middle Ages had to face the necessity of defending the seaboard. As of 1660, coastal defense became a government concern, as huge projects were carried out. Threats against the coastline did not cease till the 19th century. Over time, a system of defense took shape ranging from big stonework towers in the Middle Ages to the forts, citadels, fortified islands and batteries built by Vauban. Over the last three centuries, several hundred forts gradually cropped up along the French coastline. Readers are invited to discover the types of these bastions.

Seaside Pleasures (1930-1960) Leisure at the seashore - the perceptions and forms of expression associated with it - significantly changed in the late 1930s. The shore -where the body grew strong thanks to the sun and to contact with air and water, where tourism and vacations for everyone took a material form -became a place propitious to a sensitive, primordial experience of the body and space. Bodily morals and the structure of social relations had less and less say over the meaning of the impressions experienced in this place of contrasts. By studying the shift from a cognitive representation guided by ideas to a discourse giving a special place to sensations and the intensity of experiences, the types of temporary habitat for vacationers can be examined as well as the characteristics of the places of practice where the uses of meanings are literally redistributed.

From Lagoon to Sea : When the Bream Pass In Sète, from late August till mid-November, people fish for bream. Since this fish is caught along quays or canals, this activity, which cyclically mobilizes knowledge and know-how, reveals the meeting of two types of geographical space : sea and pool. This invites us to explore the connections between three recurrent themes : sea, lagoon and city. This ethnographic investigation of bream-fishing sheds light on a seldom encountered sociability. Given this activity's invariability and constant repetition, a hypothesis is made about its ritualization. Sea, canal and pool are types of space found all around the edge of the Mediterranean and along parts of the Atlantic shore. By constantly resuming the sea/lagoon dialogue, these coastal zones occupy a central position in shaping the cultural universe of lagoon societies along the seashore.

Farming Algae in Brittany For several centuries, the farming of algae on the coasts of Brittany has provided industry with raw material. The potential is diverse and rich. High demand from both industry and agriculture led public administrations to lay down strict regulations. Usages and customs for organizing the harvest completed these measures. Nowadays, a dozen different species are harvested. Whereas the demand for algae as food has decreased, industry still consumes tons of laminaria. Although farming of this species is tightly regulated, improvements can still be made on : the productivity of boats, the adaptation of the float, and the development of tools adapted to harvesting specific seaweeds.

The Mentality Underlying Development : The Foreshore of the Mont-Saint-Michel Bay From being a natural site for shellfishery since ancient times, the foreshore of the Mont-Saint-Michel Bay became a productive and cultural center as of the 19th century. From being a natural resource, shellfish became a grown product. This change, which corresponded to the emergence of new activities on the national level, upset the symbolic bonds between men and places of production. Developing this bay, which belongs to the maritime public domain, fits into a productivistic mentality that makes objects and activities, past and present, patrimonial.

Oysters from Marennes : Between Public and Private Domain Marennes-Oléron ; foreshore, marshes ; oysters. These key words provide an overall picture of a French oyster-producing region where, in less than a century, three products have been successively obtained from two areas : the marshes, which are private property ; and the foreshore, which is part of the maritime public domain. From yesterday to today, what questions have arisen about the conception, management and uses of these oyster-producing areas ? What changes have occurred in the private/public mix ? The private/public distinction enables us to perceive the transition between facts of nature and facts of culture, as well as linkages between them.

How to Conserve the Calanques Massif Given its Diverse Uses To talk about conserving a natural area means writing the history of its uses, which fit into the general evolution of the functions successively assigned to different parts of the national territory in France. The means of conservation become visible and take on meaning only through the changing uses to which a place has been put. From its intrinsic relation with the uses to be created, limited or reinforced at a given time, conservation assumes characteristic forms. The redistribution of geographical space (a full part of the transformation of social processes) comes into play during each phase of the contending uses that social groups with different, even contradictory, relations to nature advocate. Herein, a special natural site is analyzed : the Calanques Massif along the Mediterranean is a contact zone between sea and land that concentrates the practices and issues of power with special intensity.

Developing a Coastal Site : Between Politics and Pragmatism Questions about the future of a coastal site guide this analysis of a decision-making process involving private and public actors. Public actions do not necessitate objectives and clearly formulated policies. In certain contexts, public decisions come out of a random process. Although actors' preferences are often uncertain, their choices are redefined and consolidated during action. Adopting a pragmatic perspective, this analysis also tries to delimit the strategic models of action as the model of justification.