Initiatives adapted to local environmental issues and the duration of the project are taken on long-term sites operated and managed by Group companies as well as worksites. VINCI has entered into specific commitments in this area as part of the act4nature international initiative. As Group businesses operate locally over long periods, a number of educational initiatives are implemented to support regional actors (see paragraph 3.1.5, “Dialogue with stakeholders”, page 228).
| Actions taken | Performance indicators | |
|---|---|---|
| Zero use of phytosanitary products | Zero use of phytosanitary products Actions taken
2030 Ambition: zero phytosanitary products used at all VINCI sites by 2030 (except where required under contracts or regulations) |
Zero use of phytosanitary products Performance indicators
|
| Action plans, tools and approaches | Action plans, tools and approaches Actions taken
2030 Ambition: no net land take by VINCI Immobilier in France |
Action plans, tools and approaches Performance indicators
|
| Offsets and green works | Offsets and green works Actions taken
|
Offsets and green works Performance indicators Offsetting measures taken |
The Group implements a wide range of measures to reduce environmental impacts at both its fixed sites and its worksites.
VINCI Immobilier is focusing its strategy to preserve natural environments, aiming to meet a “no net land take” target in France by 2030. Its approach involves the use of a calculation method defined on the basis of existing work to measure soil sealing before and after projects. For example, VINCI Immobilier recycled a brownfield site in Bischheim, near Strasbourg, to develop a social housing building for seniors, comprising 52 units under home ownership incentive programmes. Located in a dense urban area, the soil had been completely sealed as a brownfield site, but by creating open outdoor spaces and planted areas over concrete, 33% of the land surface was unsealed. In doing so, the development promotes the natural environment while meeting a significant need for housing.
The “no net land take” target is measured using two key indicators: the percentage change in land take (ΔDA) and the need for land take (see paragraph 5.4.4 of the “Note on the methods used in workforce-related, social and environmental reporting”, page 285). To meet the no net land take target, both of these indicators would have to be zero for the entire scope. As the first nationwide property developer to make this commitment, ahead by more than 20 years on the target set by France’s Climate and Resilience Law, VINCI Immobilier is a member of the biodiversity working group led by the Scientific and Technical Centre for Building under a mandate from the Department of Housing, Urban Development and Land Management under the Ministry of the Ecological Transition. At 31 December 2022, the percentage change in land take for the year came to 6%, and the need for land take was 0.05.
Operators of linear infrastructure concessions are primarily concerned with limiting the fragmentation of natural habitats during operations as well as construction work and with reducing land use. Their efforts focus on the ecological transparency of their infrastructure, the reversibility of barriers, and the restoration of sensitive environments and ecological connectivity. This includes building and restoring wildlife crossings, making improvements to hydraulic structures, restoring and enhancing sites of ecological interest, seeding and replanting slopes, sustainable roadside grass mowing, and so on. As they design and operate infrastructure over the long term, concession companies can develop expertise and use their networks under concession for field surveys and educational initiatives. All structures that restore ecological connectivity on the VINCI Autoroutes network are regularly monitored to check that they are functioning properly and are being used by wildlife. In 2022, VINCI Autoroutes published a feedback report on all ecological continuity structures built on its network between 2011 and 2019. In 2022, the number of wildlife crossings and the length of fenced sections increased compared with 2021, with the inclusion of the 130 crossings along the western Strasbourg bypass and new underpasses on the Escota network.
| 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crossings for small and large wildlife (in number) | Crossings for small and large wildlife (in number) 2022 1,102 |
Crossings for small and large wildlife (in number) 2021 966 |
Crossings for small and large wildlife (in number) 2020 957 |
| Fenced sections (in km) | Fenced sections (in km)2022 8,949 |
Fenced sections (in km)2021 8,922 |
Fenced sections (in km)2020 8,765 |
With the help of the I Care consulting firm, VINCI Autoroutes is developing a biodiversity footprint indicator to measure the impact of the presence, use, operation, maintenance and development of existing infrastructure. The indicator also takes into account all related services such as distribution and food management at service areas.
On top of initiatives to enhance ecological transparency, infrastructure managers work to reduce the impact of their operations on natural environments. In recent years, operators have changed how they manage their land to promote biodiversity. Among its targets for 2030, VINCI Autoroutes aims to apply extensive management systems to 100% of its motorway network, and to carry out 200 land rehabilitation projects, under a partnership with the French National Forest Office (ONF), along the land under concession. In 2022, as the first of these restoration projects, a wetland along the A87 motorway (at La Roche-sur-Yon in western France) was rehabilitated, with the creation of a pond and local species planted. When vendor agreements are renewed for service areas, VINCI Autoroutes uses Biodi(V)strict® methodology to assess whether the applicant’s plan will improve, maintain or degrade the site’s natural areas. Developed by VINCI and AgroParisTech and operated by Urbalia, Biodi(V)strict® is the first predictive tool used to measure the biodiversity potential of urban construction projects. It assesses the services provided by type (e.g. natural water retention and urban cool islands) and informs urban development projects about biodiversity preservation. Applicants are required to ensure either improvements or the lack of further degradation in relation to at least three of the five ecological functions studied. In addition, Escota offers the use of one of its sites to participate in urban planning
