Environment

Many people move to France in search of a slower “less-is-more” lifestyle with consumerism taking a backseat to family and reduced stress. Now this is becoming the target of more and more French people.

I read in Connexion about the discount ‘bonus’ given for buying a new Zoe electric car. Is this also available if you buy second-hand and how does it work in such a case?  L.F.

Protecting the environment is set to become part of the constitution after MPs voted in favour of the move.

Seen nipping up and down the River Saône in Lyon, the Neptunéo electric catamaran owes its origins to a long-standing problem... but can prevent others for the future.

Moves to stop more of France being concreted over with new developments – the government says builders must compensate by creating equivalent green spaces – come years after residents in Caen took ‘greening’ into their own hands... by taking over pavement cracks for plants.

Device collects real-time information on pollution levels from vehicle exhausts

A Breton beekeeper is preparing for Europe-wide sales of his innovative trap for Asian hornets after he won France’s most prestigious inventor’s prize.

After seeing tonnes of plastic littering a beach in Senegal, a young entrepreneur has started a business turning the waste into flooring tiles and panels, creating jobs in both France and Senegal.

Businesses obliged to switch off illuminated signs, advertising and window displays between 1am and 6am

I have had a problem with pyrale du buis caterpillars as they attacked several hedges in my garden. Are there any natural methods I can use against them? V.T.

Farmer and sculptor’s idea inspires new energy projects

French MPs have voted against calls for a law to ban glyphosate weedkiller despite President Macron’s pledge last November to ban its use in France within three years. 

Plans to plant a forest up to four times the size of New York’s Central Park 

Jogger Nicolas Lem­onnier thought little of picking up rubbish from the roadside while on a run but posting a photo on Facebook of him doing so has led to a global litter scheme.

Airline travellers with large pets will, if they are allowed to travel with them, have to put them in the hold as they are not allowed in the cabin, which may mean they will go through the baggage X-ray scanner like all luggage.

Anyone planning home improvements such as a garden workshop, new kitchen or rewiring a house can get a loan for up to €75,000 with lower-than-normal interest rates through a prêt travaux or crédit travaux.