476 



Canadian Forestry Journal, April, ipi6. 



a satisfactory means of stream con- 

 trol, and the other defects remained. 

 Finally in 1882, after 18 years of 

 agitation, the work of torrent control 

 was placed upon a new basis by the 

 law at present in force. 



All Interests Considered. 



The Forest Service still remains re- 

 sponsible for the work of stream con- 

 trol. Works are undertaken only 

 where soil erosion has begun. The 

 projects of the Forest Service are ex- 

 amined by a government commission 

 on which local interests are repre- 

 sented and the boundaries of the area 

 within which remedial works were 

 large, and the formation of re- 

 venue bearing forests was an 

 integral part of the scheme. Now 

 an effort is made to restrict to a mini- 

 mum the area upon which works are 

 conducted, and on this restricted area 

 to undertake intensive work, not only 

 plantations to fix the soil and check 

 the run-off, but also engineering works 

 to break the descent of the water and 

 support the banks and beds of the tor- 

 rent. Large areas of forest are be- 

 ing established only in the lower Ce- 

 vennes. 



The works conducted by the State 

 are carried on only on land belonging 

 in fee simple to the State. Should 

 there be within the area necessary for 

 the control of a stream land owned by 

 bodies and persons other than the 

 State, one of two courses is adopted. 



Taking Private Lands. 



The State may buy or expropriate 

 the necessary land. The right of ex- 

 propriation is rarely exercised. The 

 State acquires by friendly agreement 

 the land on all streams where the pub- 

 lic interest in the control of the stream 

 is paramount. 



The owner of the land, whether a 

 private individual or a community,, 

 may retain the property upon condi- 

 tion that an agreement is made to 

 conduct within a term of years fixed 

 by the Forest Service under the super- 

 vision of the Forest Service the im- 

 provement works necessary. Com- 



munities usually avail themselves of 

 this privilege, and in such cases both 

 the State and the departments in which 

 the community is situated make money 

 grants equal together on the average 

 to one-half or two-thirds of the cost 

 of the work. The State also assists 

 with advice, and in the case of refor- 

 estation with seed and plants. 



The law also names certain moun- 

 tain communities in which, because of 

 their important effects on stream flow, 

 pasture lands must be treated accord- 

 ing to conservative regulations in or- 

 der to prevent destruction of the sod 

 cover by over-grazing. Any order- 

 ed management of mountain pastures 

 has been strenuously opposed by the 

 mountain population, even though the 

 object of all such regulation of use is 

 the improvement of the pasture. 

 ]\Ioney grants have been made by the 

 State, and assistance has been given 

 freely in all cases where private indi- 

 viduals or communities have shown a 

 'disposition to protect mountain pas- 

 tures. Nevertheless, the opposition 

 still persists. A commisison was ap- 

 pointed in 1910 to study better means 

 of improving conditions and amend- 

 ments to the law were under consid- 

 eration at the outbreak of war. 



Developing Specialists. 



The French Forest Service in vigor- 

 ously taking up the responsibility^ 

 placed on it by the law of 1882 has led 

 the world in works for torrent control. 

 Foresters and engineers have co-oper- 

 ated in checking the destructive head- 

 long plunge of waters from the Alps, 

 Cevennes and Pyrenees. Half a cen- 

 tury ci experience, dating from the 

 earlier l?vvs, has led to the growth in 

 the Forest Service of specialists in 

 stream control, who have developed 

 several well-defined methods of accom- 

 plishing their object. 



The reforestation of the catchment 

 areas of the torrentia' streams ar.d 

 their tributaries was in the early years 

 the only means adapted for the control 

 of water-flow. Even now, althoi<gh 

 in certain conditions it has been found 

 necessary to rely on engineering works 



