Mayors of coastal cities urgently call for the creation of a "national fund" to combat coastal erosion

The mayors of coastal towns threatened by coastal erosion warned on Wednesday 20 November of the "absolute urgency" of creating a sustainable "national fund" to ensure the "survival" of the coasts in the face of the scale of the consequences of climate change.

"Our municipalities cannot bear the burden of the retreating coastline alone," write the Association of Mayors of France (AMF) and the National Association of Coastal Elected Representatives (Anel) in a joint press release issued on the occasion of the Mayors' Congress.

Faced with "the government's persistent inaction" and "the absence of suitable financial mechanisms", the two associations are launching a "solemn appeal" for the creation of funding dedicated to the management of the coastal strip.

"Our coastlines, today on the front line of the effects of climate change, are being neglected, despite the increasing evidence and studies demonstrating the scale of the threat," they note bitterly.

"Without strong and sustainable national support, coastal communities will soon find themselves unable to ensure the safety of their residents and preserve their essential infrastructure," they add.

According to the latest report from Cerema, a public institution that supports the State and local authorities in adapting to climate change, coastal erosion is eating away at 20% of the French coastline and could affect, if nothing is done, hundreds of thousands of homes, infrastructures and economic activities by 2100, due to the acceleration of the rise in sea levels.

In the short term, the assets under threat already represent hundreds of millions of euros in housing and business premises.

By 2100, "more than 450.000 homes and thousands of public buildings are at risk of being affected, with costs estimated at tens of billions of euros," the press release states.

However, the 2025 finance bill still does not provide for any specific funding. In addition, the green fund has been reduced by 1,5 billion euros while the financing needs for adaptation projects "continue to grow", the associations further emphasize.

The AMF and Anel are calling for the creation of a "perennial national fund, within the framework of national solidarity, inspired by the Barnier fund, and funded by new resources".

In particular, they propose to earmark "a fraction of the revenue that will come from the activity of offshore wind turbines located beyond 12 nautical miles" or to create a "symbolic participation of coastal users".