The Mission Bassin Minier (MBM) was created in 2000 by decision of the French government. This public body supports local and regional authorities in promoting urban regeneration and the sustainable redevelopment of the former coalfield.
Since 2012, the Nord–Pas de Calais coal basin has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It is considered a treasure of humanity—a “living and evolving cultural landscape.”

MBM’s responsibilities include the protection and promotion of mining heritage, as well as the implementation of a wide range of actions: spatial planning, urban regeneration, rehabilitation of former coal miners’ housing
complexes, development of the coalfield’s green belt, and studies and expertise aimed at revitalizing and reusing closed coal shafts, former railway lines, and mining sites.