Saint - Guilhem - le - Désert

The village of Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert is at the centre of an initiative launched by the French Ministry of the Environment in the early 1990s, which local elected representatives decided to support: Operation "Grand Site".
 
A "Grand Site" is a classified, protected site under the law of 2 May 1930, pertaining to "the protection of natural monuments and sites of an artistic, historic, legendary or picturesque nature" which are very well known and liable as a consequence to suffer significant damage.

The Grand Site of Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert and the Hérault Gorges covers an area of some 10,000 ha and includes five municipalities in the Hérault Valley, Aniane, Montpeyroux, Puéchabon, Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert and St-Jean-de-Fos.

The objectives of the Grand Site initiative are to manage visits by tourists by reorganising how cars move around the site and spreading visitor interest over a wider area; to promote remarkable sites, monuments and landscapes; to protect and help reintroduce natural and agricultural species and to improve the welcome offered to visitors.

The aim of the Hérault Valley Communauté de communes, a joint body representing the various different towns and villages in the area, which has been managing Operation Grand Site since 2002, is therefore to protect and develop the site whilst retaining its essential character and respecting the wishes of local residents.