The Val d'Oise departement (French County), created when the Paris Region was divided up in 1967, quickly asserted itself as a dynamic department. Its 1.2 million residents, the City of CERGY-PONTOISE'S nearly 200,000 residents, and 32 towns with over 10,000 residents all give the department a two-fold aspect:
as well as extremely vast rural areas maintained in agricultural production zones: mixed farming and breeding in the Vexin Français (in a Regional Natural Park), with large-scale agriculture procuring high added value in the Plaine de France are (with another Regional Natural Park).
The Val d'Oise department, located in the North and Northwest periphery of the Paris urban area, truly enjoys a privileged location as both "gateway" to the Paris metropolis, and as an area open to Northern Europe (Great Britain, Belgium, the Netherlands, etc.).
Its international character is strengthened by the presence of the ROISSY CHARLES-DE-GAULLE Airport on its territory, with an integrated TGV high speed train railway station providing remarkable connections for plane and train passengers.