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Shading devices, soil permeabilization, renewable energy production: here's an overview of the main requirements for parking lots.
In recent years, a number of laws have tightened the requirements for parking lots, with a view to preserving natural areas and developing renewable energies.
Certain types of parking lots are therefore subject to certain obligations:
- shade ;
- renewable energy processes;
- hydraulic developments.
1 - Outdoor parking lots over 1,500 m²: obligation to install shading systems equipped with renewable energy production systems
Introduced by Law no. 2023-175 of March 10, 2023, a law to accelerate the production of renewable energies, known as APER, outdoor parking lots of over 1,500 sq.m., existing on July 1, 2023, will have to equip at least half of their surface area with shading systems incorporating a renewable energy process before :
- July 1, 2026 for parks (*) with a surface area of 10,000 m² or more,
- July 1, 2028 for parks (*) with a surface area of less than 10,000 m².
(*) parks not managed under concession or public service delegation agreements
Additional deadlines may be granted, particularly for parks with a surface area of 10,000 square meters or more, if the operator can provide proof of a commitment contract with an advance payment by December 31, 2024 at the latest, and a purchase order signed before December 31, 2025 for photovoltaic panels whose technical and environmental performance, as well as resilience of supply, are specified by decree (not yet published), and providing for their installation before January 1, 2028, in order to encourage the installation of European photovoltaic panels.
When the shading systems are installed, the parking lot operator will be required to post signs indicating the origin of the panels for a period of one year from the start of the work.
The law provides for the possibility of pooling such a facility for adjacent parking lots if
- an agreement is formalized
- the surface area of the shaded areas equals the sum of the shaded areas to be installed in each of the parking lots concerned.
Exemptions for the installation of shading systems integrating a renewable energy process are provided for, in particular:
- for technical, safety, architectural, heritage, environmental or site and landscape reasons
- due to economic cost
- if 50% of the parking area is shaded
- if other renewable energy production processes are installed in the parking lot, subject to equivalent renewable energy production.
- in the event of the total or partial removal or conversion of a park as part of a development project or operation for which an initial authorization has been issued before the deadline has expired
A justification is required to benefit from an exemption. A decree is expected on the subject of exemptions.
For the French overseas departments and regions, a decree will specify the thresholds of liability for each of them, which will be between 500 and 2,500m².
Finally, financial penalties are provided for each year until compliance is achieved, up to a ceiling of :
- 20 000 € si le parc est d’une superficie < 10 000 m²
- 40,000 € if the park's surface area is ≥ 10,000 m².
Application decrees are expected on the subject of these shaded areas equipped with renewable energy production systems.
2 - Car parks associated with certain types of buildings: shading requirements and water features
As a reminder, the Energy and Climate Act of November 8, 2019 and the Climate and Resilience Act of August 22, 2021 have introduced and reinforced in the town planning code an obligation to equip certain parking lots with shading devices, as well as hydraulic facilities for stormwater management.
This obligation applies to :
- new parking lots or existing parking lots with major renovations, associated with new buildings of over 500 m² (1,000 m² for office buildings, and 500 m² from January 1, 2025);
- New parking lots or existing parking lots with heavy renovation, associated with extensions and heavy renovations of buildings or parts of buildings over 500m² (1,000 m² for office buildings, and 500 m² from January 1, 2025);
- parking lots accessible to the public of more than 500 m².
For these parking lots, the following must be provided:
- on at least half the surface area of the park a shading device :
- or shading systems with solar panels (thermal or photovoltaic);
- or vegetated features (trees with wide canopies).
- and stormwater management systems using surface coatings, hydraulic systems or vegetation to increase soil permeability and promote water infiltration or evaporation.
In order to understand the context, a number of definitions have been provided:
- Heavy renovation of a building: work whose purpose is to reinforce or replace structural elements that contribute to the stability or solidity of the building.
- Heavy renovation of a parking lot: total replacement of the floor surface covering over an area representing at least half the surface area of the parking lot. A parking lot where the sum of areas undergoing total replacement of the ground surface covering, undertaken over a period of fifteen years, is greater than half the total surface area, is subject to the obligations resulting from article L. 111-19-1 of the French urban planning code.
- Shade-enhancing vegetation: wide-canopy trees planted throughout the park, with one tree for every three parking spaces.
The surface areas of the parking lots to be taken into account are as follows:
- Obligation to install vegetation to shade the park or shade structures incorporating a renewable energy production process
- Parking spaces for vehicles and their trailers, located off the public highway, within a perimeter between the park entrance(s) and exit(s) (excluding green spaces, rest areas, storage areas, logistics, handling and unloading areas);
- Traffic lanes and paths, facilities and toll areas providing access to these sites, within a perimeter between the park's entrance(s) and exit(s).
- Obligation to incorporate surface coverings, hydraulic features or vegetation to promote permeability and infiltration of rainwater or its evaporation:
- Same surface areas as for shading devices + spaces provided for the integration of surface coverings, water features or vegetated devices included in the park perimeter.
Finally, exemptions to the installation of such devices are possible when it is demonstrated that the installation of each of these processes and devices is impossible due to :
- Technical constraints related to the nature of the soil (geological composition, slope)
- The technical impossibility of not aggravating a natural, technological or civil security risk as a result of such an installation.
- Technical constraints related to the use of the parking lot, making it incompatible with such an installation (vehicle load-bearing capacity)
- The following economic constraints:
Specific exemptions for shading devices equipped with renewable energy production :
The evaluation of discounted cost and discounted income must be the subject of a technical-economic study.
In the case of a photovoltaic installation, the technical-economic study is carried out by a company with a professional qualification or certification, or by derogation by a company with a sign of quality issued by an organization that has signed the "RGE Etudes" charter with ADEME and corresponds to the photovoltaic activity.
In all cases, the technical and economic study must be attached to the certificate justifying the conditions of exemption.
A guide issued by the French Ministry for Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion sets out the regulatory obligations on these subjects, and provides application details with concrete examples.
In addition, it is also necessary to be aware of any PLU requirements that may affect parking lots.
Finally, it should be noted that these regulations are not the only ones to apply to parking lots. These include, for example, the obligation to install recharging facilities for electric or rechargeable hybrid vehicles, secure bicycle parking and parking for people with reduced mobility.
Sources :
- Loin°2023-175 of March 10, 2023
- Code de l'urbanisme Article L. 111-19-1: Provision of parking areas
- Code de la construction et de l'habitation, articles L. 171-1 to L. 175-2
- Code de la construction et de l'habitation Articles R. 171-32 to R. 171-42
- Code de l'urbanisme Articles R. 111-1 to R. 111-55: National planning regulations
- Order of March 5, 2024 implementing decree no. 2023-1208 of December 18, 2023 implementing article L. 171-4 of the French Construction and Housing Code and article L. 111-19-1 of the French Urban Planning Code governing parking lots.