Posters Page 5 of 7 A Battle to Conserve Nature and Tradition Lac du Lauvitel - Ecrins National Park Introduction The valley of Serre Chevalier in the French Alps has suffered the impact of tourism for some time. A large network of ski slopes, lifts, hostels, specialist shops, and of course, 'apres ski' has grown, however, during the course of the fieldwork exercises my interest was sparked by the attempts at both National and local levels to stop the onslaught of mass tourism in two other locations. On the 27th March, 1973, the French Government declared the Ecrins mountains a National Park in an attempt to protect a wilderness area for future generations to enjoy. Similarly, the communes of Montgenevre, Val des Pres and Navache, located in the Claree Valley, are campaigning to stop the construction of a new modern link road and winter sports area. This threatens to open up the valley to more and more outsiders and the increases in visitors would no doubt benefit the valley's economy, but the majority of residents seem to want to retain traditional cultures and land use. It is my intention to examine the two locations with emphasis on the physical aspects of the Lac du Lauvitel ( a gateway to the Ecrins National Park) and settlements of the Claree Valley, which is perceived to be one of the last remaining valleys in the Alps, where traditional rural land exists. Attentions will be paid to the methods and Techniques used during the fieldwork study. Photograph A- Lac du Lauvitel During the Pleistocene time period, the advancing glacier formed a 'U' shaped valley, and eroded a hollow in the bedrock As the glacier retreated, terminal morraine was deposited and meltwater filed the hollow to form the lake. Rock slides from the valley sides added to the terminal morraine deposits. Varves, or lake floor deposits, are now deposited annually now depending on the valley accumulation and ablation rates of the cirque glaciers higher up the valley. Water arriving at the lake has lost velocity and split into distributaries allowing a delta sediment disposition to occur. (Clowes and Comfort 1994) B- Annotated Sketch - River Veneon Flat bottomed rift valley visible. As the glacier entered the wider valley erosional energy would have been lost and sediment deposition would have occurred. Similarly, today, the River Veneon has lost velocity entering the wider valley allowing the formation of the braided streams. The increased strength of the sun on the south facing slope has caused the snow to melt at a faster rate. The increased run off velocity caused gullies in the surface material which are now dry. Vertical cliffs and scree cones of 31-33 degrees angles, and a deep rock scar on the north facing slope. The scar may have been caused by the glacier plucking a large chunk of rock from the valley side. Settlement located on the flood plain. Flat fertile land, easily irrigated and with good access to other valleys. (Clowes and Comfort, 1994) Photograph C- Slope and Sediment Analysis Method: Groups of three or four people were allocated a section of one particular mound of stones. Instructions were given of how to measure the shape and size of the fifteen stones using a sediment roundness/angularity stone board, and by calculating the b/a of each stone. Groups had to measure the angle and length of the slope relevant to their section. Results Angle of slope: +7 degrees Length of slope: 4 meters by 4.6 meters Sediment Size Sediment Shape a (cm) b (cm) c (cm) Mean Size b/a Shape Class 46 34 16 33 0.739 angular 16 17 5 13 1.06 sub angular 14 8 4 6.5 0.571 very angular 50 38 28 36.5 0.76 sub angular 35 32 22 28.5 0.914 very angular 9 7 4 6.5 0.777 sub angular 75 13 10 16 0.52 sub angular 4 3 1 2.5 0.75 very angular 70 35 30 45 0.5 very angular 4 3 3 3 0.75 very angular 15 15 10 13 1 sub rounded 12 9 8 9.5 0.75 very angular 11 9 4 8 0.818 angular 50 22 30 34 0.44 angular 20 17 10 15.5 1.7 sub angular Interpretation of Results It became apparent that the method used was flawed due to the lack of communication. The groups did not decide exactly how the stones were to be selected from their section of the whole pile. The necessity for complete continuity and precision of techniques was highlighted during the exercise. However, due to the position on the slope, the mostly rounded shape of the stones and shapes of the mounds, we formed the opinion tat the stones may have been deposited by mud slides. Claree Valley Photograph D 'Plampinet' The Claree Valley has many buildings of this kind, old and in varying degrees of renovation. The three storey building in the centre of the photograph has the typical design of many Alpine houses. The arch on the ground floor would have allowed the access for animals which would be kept indoors during winter. The second floor, benefiting from the rising heat of the animals, would provide living quarters for the family, and the cooler third floor would be used for storing grain and supplies. The villagers rely heavily on agriculture as the their livelihoods, cereal crops, vegetables and livestock were evident as were many saw mills. Tourism is light in the area, mainly due there only one ski station in Nevanche, aimed at families and cross country skiing rather than advanced skiers. Other leisure pursuits include camping, cycling and walking. Small cottage businesses are evolving which provide local specialities such as honey and cheese for visitors. Photograph E The idyllic nature of the valley has attracted families from Briancon, only 25km away, and also the Italian families from just over the border. Individual plots of land have been built on in the valley, and small scale housing developments have been built just outside Nevache. Here a brand new primary school for just 32 pupils has been built, and is sponsored by Microsoft boasting an 18 unit computer lab in the junior department. The new houses are typically large and generally detached, and have been built to compliment the traditional style of the area. Beautifully renovated shrines are evident in the high Alps region, and here, old and new are seen to co-exist quite well in my view. Survey of the Buildings in Nevache A survey was carried out to try and establish to what degree the village had remained in it's original form. We expected narrow streets, stone built buildings with a few windows facing south. Older houses, without the benefit of modern design and heating techniques would need tom conserve heat as much as possible, hence the location of windows and fires. Groups of students formulated a criteria which was to be used to study all the buildings in a section of the road. Our group decided to use: Function of building Proximity to other buildings How many windows and the direction they faced The location of the Chimney The building and roof material. Table of Results Function Building Material Roof Material Chimney (wall) Majority of windows face Distance from nearest neighbour in paces Residence Rendered stone Corrugated metal N S 5 Residence Stone Corrugated metal N S 4 Residence Stone Corrugated metal S S 12 Residence Stone Wood N S 1 Residence Stone Wood N S 7 Residence Stone Corrugated metal S S 7 Residence Rendered stone Corrugated metal S S 6 Interpretation of Results We found the road e investigated was made up of old, residential, recently renovated buildings. Other groups had found similar results. We also noticed that the facilities and amenities were predominately for the use of ;local residents and included a church, town hall, a small shop an a school. For the tourists, we could only see one small and very basic B&B. However, the tourist information centre offered the evidence of further tourist accommodation. A similar method was used to study the new housing development outside Nevache. Here we found buildings were being constructed from modern breeze block, however, widows still predominately faced south and roofs were made from corrugated metal. The major difference was that of space. The land between buildings was often over 40 paces in length, presenting considerably diminished sense of community, security and group belonging. Conclusion The location of the Lac du Lauvitel is a superb site for field investigation of glacial land forms and processes, however, it is also the destination of many tourists and local families seeking peace and quite. The National Park rules are many and stringent, and on the spot fines are imposed e.g. no dogs allowed, smoking or hunting allowed. Areas of conflict include military training activities and sport activities such as mountain biking. Arrangements are being made to allow for bike and horse tracks to be developed in the area, but land use protection is the focal aim. From my observations the paths were well maintained and there was no litter, and overall, in my view, it would be fair to say that tourism is being kept well under control as a result of the wilderness protection initiative (Karl Donert, Geography Review, Jan 1994). The residents of the Claree valley still appear to be in control of their own destiny. Old buildings are being renovated, new ones are generally in keeping with their surroundings, and ski tourism is very minimum. Population figures in the valley have gently increased since the 1950's due to the French middle class commuters and their families in the main. The old and the new residents seem to have the same ideology of keeping the valley in as natural as possible. I hope they succeed. Jane Watts Year 1 - Geography | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Page 5 of 7