The French coastal environmental research programme (PNEC) does basic research on coastal areas in metropolitan France and overseas. The fact that it is directed and financed by several organisations and covers a wide range of disciplines makes it a novel programme. This document is a summary of results achieved from 1999-2002, either in specific geographic areas (eastern Channel sites, bay of Seine, Mont-Saint-Michel bay, bay of Biscay, gulf of Lions, Mediterranean lagoons, New Caledonia, French Guyana) or by research themes (biogeochemical cycles, population dynamics, toxic algae blooms, hydroclimatic factors and variability, microorganisms, environmental stewardship and sedimentary dynamics).