Pornichet
| Pornichet | ||
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Sunset at the entrance to the port of Pornichet | ||
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  Pornichet | ||
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Location within Pays de la Loire region  Pornichet | ||
| Coordinates: 47°16′39″N 2°20′20″W / 47.2775°N 2.3389°WCoordinates: 47°16′39″N 2°20′20″W / 47.2775°N 2.3389°W | ||
| Country | France | |
| Region | Pays de la Loire | |
| Department | Loire-Atlantique | |
| Arrondissement | Saint-Nazaire | |
| Canton | La Baule-Escoublac | |
| Intercommunality | région nazairienne et l'estuaire | |
| Government | ||
| • Mayor (2008–2014) | Robert Belliot | |
| Area1 | 12.67 km2 (4.89 sq mi) | |
| Population (2008)2 | 10,502 | |
| • Density | 830/km2 (2,100/sq mi) | |
| INSEE/Postal code | 44132 / 44380 | |
| Elevation | 0–44 m (0–144 ft) | |
| Website | http://www.mairie-pornichet.fr/ | |
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1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. | ||
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Pornichet is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.
Geography
Location
Pornichet is a coastal town of the Côte d'Amour, located a tens of kilometers west of Saint-Nazaire.
The adjacent towns are Saint-Nazaire and La Baule-Escoublac.
Physical geography
The town of Pornichet is located
- on the line sillon de Guérande, orientated NW-SE ; the town border is located on the Route de Guérande, D392d, at approximately 4 km from the shore, at a place called Pont de Terre (railway junction) at the Quatre Vents ;
- on a coastal rock belt located upfront of the sillon de Guérande (same orientation), between two rock heads, the Pointe du Bec and the Pointe de la Lande (border with Saint-Nazaire), separated of 4,25 km ;
- on sandy terranes part of the sand dune unit of Escoublac, between the place named Mazy (border with La Baule-Escoublac) and the Pointe du Bec (length : 2 km ; width : 100 m at Mazy, 1 km at the head) ;
- on former swamp area (racetrack).
The lowest altitude (except shoreline) is of 4 m at the racetrack ; The dune behind the beach of the Libraires reaches 9 m. The cliffs of Bonne Source and Sainte-Marguerite can reach 12 m. Going in lands, altitudes progressively increase up to 44 m ; the highest point is located in the hamlet called Ville ès Blais.
Shore and beaches
Pornichet has three beaches : in the West, the Beach of the Libraires (plage des Libraires), of 2 km length, is part of the Bay of Pouliguen (baie du Pouliguen), shared with La Baule ; the border is marked by the Mazy creek (currently underground). In the Est, between the Pointe du Bec and the Pointe de la Lande, are located the beaches of Bonne-Source (2,5 km) and Sainte-Marguerite (1,5 km), separated by a rocky head called the Pointe de Congrigoux.
Toponymy
The name of Pornichet comes from Port Niché, which could be translated by Port in a niche. The town is named following its principal characteristic a port located in an alcove along a salt-work channel, which was connecting the salt-works (current racetrack) and the bay.
History
Until the town was created in 1900, Pornichet was a hamlet of Saint-Nazaire.
Sister cities
See also
- Communes of the Loire-Atlantique department
- La Baule - Guérande Peninsula
- Parc naturel régional de Brière
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pornichet. |
