Entwicklungskonzept Oberes Moseltal (EOM)

Entwicklungskonzept Oberes Moseltal (EOM)

Border Region
Luxembourg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland, France
Language(s)
Allemand
Introduction

The Upper Moselle Valley (EOM) development concept has initiated a cross-border and spatial development and planning process on the basis of a holistic, needs-oriented and participatory multi-level approach.

Summary

The Moselle Valley is one of the great river landscapes of Western Europe, with a unique natural and cultural heritage. The part of the valley that lies on the border between France, Luxembourg and Germany reflects the diversity of the Greater Region through its history and international links. For some years now, the Upper Moselle Valley has been facing the challenge of reconciling the current development dynamics with the preservation of its rural landscape.

In order to meet this challenge and to strengthen the functional cross-border connections between Luxembourg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland, the ministries responsible for regional planning have developed the Upper Moselle Valley development concept in cooperation with regional and municipal actors on the basis of the guiding principles defined in the EOM concept.

Content

Impulse projects are used to implement the guiding principles of the EOM in the form of a concrete, action-oriented development concept. The implementation strategy of the EOM was developed in a broadly based participatory process involving municipal actors, experts, and spatial and regional planners, who were asked to answer the following questions

How should the Upper Moselle Valley be developed in the coming years within the framework of cross-border coordination? What are the most important challenges and necessary actions for a sustainable regional development? Which objectives, strategies and processes should contribute to an integrated development of the cross-border region?

The framework for this approach is set by the guiding principles and objectives set by the EOM, which actually involves:

  • the facilitation of consultative procedures within the Greater Region: these constitute a harmonized coordination framework at the cross-border level allowing for the development of programs and plans, projects and actions at the regional and municipal levels.
  • the consideration of formal programs and participating sides and consequently the orientation of (national) policies and projects according to cross-border guidelines.
  • Support for the development of joint measures and impulse projects to implement these objectives. For this purpose it is necessary to look for partners at the local level in particular.
  • the impulse for a "bottom-up" process, allowing the actors at the local level to advance the realization of the EOM objectives through their own projects.

Twelve project proposals are intended to initiate the realization of the EOM's guiding idea and to provide strategic impulses. These proposals cover all of the EOM's very diverse thematic fields and contribute to the profile of the area concerned. In order to respond to the diversity proposed by the EOM, various means of implementation on several levels are planned, such as

  • initiatives at the level of spatial planning and integration into the relevant legislative framework,
  • cross-border impulse projects,
  • bottom-up processes to generate projects at the local level,
  • construction and development of cross-border governance structures and instruments.

The EOM contributes to the achievement of the objectives of the Greater Region Summit, in particular the strengthening of cross-border cooperation and the development of a cross-border polycentric metropolitan region. It is also coordinated with the spatial planning concept of the Greater Region (SDTGR) developed in parallel.

An essential element of the EOM is the close cooperation between the respective ministries responsible for spatial planning and the local LEADER action groups (LAG), in particular the Frankish-Moselle (RLP) and Miselerland (LU), as well as the municipalities in the region. According to the EOM adage "bottom-up meets top-down", cross-border synergies are created and impulses are given through concrete joint projects.

Therefore, the political objective of "Europe close to the citizens" of the Interreg VI Greater Region 2021 -2027 program is perfectly in line with the objectives of the EOM in order to address the following topics within the common neighborhood region of the Mosel Valley:

  • spatial planning, housing and business development, utilities,
  • rural landscape, nature protection and preservation of undeveloped areas,
  • mobility.

 

Conclusions

The EOM project area on the border of the three Moselle countries is predestined, due to its position on the border, to be a European pilot area for cross-border cooperation. Given the lengthy procedures required to initiate and implement regional development projects, which are made even more complex by their cross-border aspects, it is all the more important for the EOM to be able to rely on a strong network of partners. On the one hand, it was possible to build on a common and proactive political approach of the ministries responsible for spatial planning in Luxembourg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland, and on the other hand on the long-established LEADER program approach in the region, and in particular on the work and successes of the respective local action groups (LAGs) of the upper Mosel valley. Through coordinated and joint action on the themes and in agreement with the local actors it was possible to federate efforts and resources and to achieve significant synergy effects as well as progress in the projects.

However, the multisectoral development of the region requires a strong interministerial commitment and the acceptance and cooperation of the municipalities. The strengths and opportunities of cross-border cooperation can only flourish if the necessary framework conditions are guaranteed and the available toolbox offers sufficient resources.

Cross-border cooperation within the framework of the EOM has proved its worth, and the introduction of regional management on the spot has given new impetus to the implementation of the development concept. For the success of the EOM, the fullest possible integration of the municipal level was an essential element in the conceptual phase and continues to be so to this day, in order to achieve tangible improvements for citizens in their daily lives across the border. 

Key Messages

The Upper Moselle Valley Development Concept (EOM) is a cross-border and interdisciplinary concept based on regional planning. Its objective is to develop the planning area of the Upper Moselle Valley between Germany and Luxembourg in an integrated and sustainable manner. The aim is to strengthen cross-border functional links, to promote interaction between the sub-areas in cooperation with the municipalities and other local actors, and to make better use of potentials through coherent development. To this end, the EOM model serves as a harmonized coordination framework for various measures and projects in the field.

Lead

Luxemburg: Ministerium für Energie und Raumentwicklung, Abteilung für Raumentwicklung (DATer); Lokale     Aktionsgruppe LEADER Miselerland
Rheinland-Pfalz: Ministerium des Innern und für Sport; Lokale Aktionsgruppe LEADER Moselfranken
Saarland: Ministerium für Inneres, Bauen und Sport

Author of the entry
Contact Person(s)
Date of creation
2022