64 research outputs found
Infrastrutture verdi e benefici ambientali. Come integrare conservazione e recupero della biodiversità nella pianificazione territoriale delle aree metropolitane Green infrastructure and environmental benefits. How to combine biodiversity conservation and restoration with territorial planning in metropolitan areas
No full textLe infrastrutture verdi (IV) urbane rappresentano un valido strumento per sostenere lo sviluppo sostenibile delle città, obiettivo strategico globale. Grazie ad una Strategia dedicata alle IV, derivata da quella per la Biodiversità al 2020, in Europa si dispone di un chiaro riferimento per il miglioramento della sostenibilità urbana e peri-urbana, in grado di stimolare l’effettiva inclusione di biodiversità e servizi ecosistemici nella pianificazione territoriale. Il contributo intende esplicitare la necessità di questa inclusione e fornire alcuni spunti per migliorane l’efficacia, a partire dall’importanza della qualità – oltre che della quantità- di specie e di ecosistemi e della connettività ecologica paesaggistica. Viene inoltre evidenziata l’importanza degli approcci interdisciplinari, in grado di esaltare le sinergie tra conservazione di specie ed ecosistemi e capacità di fornitura di molteplici servizi, risolvere eventuali conflitti e limitare compromessi dannosi per la biodiversità.Urban Green Infrastructure (GI) represents an effective tool for supporting sustainable development of cities, that is a strategic objective at the global level. Thanks to a GI Strategy, arising from that on Biodiversity to 2020, European countries dispose of a clear reference framework for addressing sustainability in urban and peri-urban areas, which is also useful for triggering the inclusion of biodiversity and ecosystem services into territorial planning. The need for such an inclusion, and some hints for enhancing its effectiveness, are delineated. In particular, the importance of species and ecosystem quality, besides quantity, and of landscape ecological connectivity is outlined. Moreover, the usefulness of multiple disciplinary skills to be involved in the planning and design processes is highlighted, in order to increase synergies between conservation targets and ecosystem service provision, to avoid and solve potential conflicts, and to reduce trade-offs impairing biodiversity
Ecological connectivity in agricultural green infrastructure. Suggested criteria for fine scale assessment and planning
No full textIn promoting biodiversity conservation and ecosystem service capacity, landscape connectivity is considered a critical feature to counteract the negative effects of fragmentation. Under a Green Infrastructure (GI) perspective, this is especially true in rural and peri-urban areas where a high degree of connectivity may be associated with the enhancement of agriculture multifunction-ality and sustainability. With respect to GI planning and connectivity assessment, the role of dispersal traits of tree species is gaining increasing attention. However, little evidence is available on how to select plant species to be primarily favored, as well as on the role of landscape heterogeneity and habitat quality in driving the dispersal success. The present work is aimed at suggesting a methodological approach for addressing these knowledge gaps, at fine scales and for peri-urban agricultural landscapes, by means of a case study in the Metropolitan City of Rome. The study area was stratified into Environmental Units, each supporting a unique type of Potential Natural Vegetation (PNV), and a multi-step procedure was designed for setting priorities aimed at enhancing connec-tivity. First, GI components were defined based on the selection of the target species to be sup-ported, on a fine scale land cover mapping and on the assessment of land cover type naturalness. Second, the study area was characterized by a Morphological Spatial Pattern Analysis (MSPA) and connectivity was assessed by Number of Components (NC) and functional connectivity metrics. Third, conservation and restoration measures have been prioritized and statistically validated. Not-withstanding the recognized limits, the approach proved to be functional in the considered context and at the adopted level of detail. Therefore, it could give useful methodological hints for the requal-ification of transitional urban–rural areas and for the achievement of related sustainable development goals in metropolitan regions
Definizione della fascia costiera per lo studio, il monitoraggio e la gestione sostenibile delle coste
No full textPer una storia dei monti «reali»: le pubblicazioni del Centro Studi sui Monti di Pietà e il credito solidaristico
No full textAnalisi della vegetazione del distretto minerario di Montevecchio (Sardegna sud-occidentale)
No full textMontevecchio (SW-Sardinia) are presented. The statistic analysis of the relevés let to recognize 14 plant communities. The hygrophilous communities
have been ascribed to the class Phragmito-Magnocaricetea, the hemicryptophytic mesohygrophilous ones to Juncetea maritimi, the therophytic to
Tuberarietea guttatae and the hemicryptophytic mesoxerophilous to Lygeo-Stipetea.
The most interesting vegetation types turned out to be the chamaephytic and nanophanerophytic ones, both kinds are belonging to sardo-corsican
endemic alliances: Ptilostemono casabonae-Euphorbion cupanii and Teucrion mari, respectively. The first alliance comprises pebble vegetation with
distinctive ecological preferences, as they are able to colonize substrata polluted by heavy metal, with low pH values. Within this alliance, 4 new
associations have been recognized: Scrophularietum bicoloris, Dactylo hispanicae-Helichrysetum tyrrhenici, Mercurialido corsicae-Euphorbietum
cupanii and Dauco maritimi-Dittrichietum viscosae, the latter with two subassociations (typicum and rumicetosum glaucescentis). As to the Teucrion
mari, 1 new association and 1 subassociation have been described (Helichryso tyrrhenici-Genistetum sulcitanae and Stachydi glutinosae-Genistetum
corsicae euphorbietosum cupanii), found on aged mining dumps, where the long abandonment made possible the beginning of the pedogenetic
processes.
The present study let to reconstruct the vegetation dynamics, that in the mining areas are clearly differing from the surrounding territory. It was
possible to identify two special series, strictly related to these habitats and verging to the establishment of plant communities pertaining to the
climatophilous series: the first is developing on coarse, hard-sloping debris, with very low water retention; the second is developing on fine-grained
and coherent materials, found on flattened or gently-sloping sites, with high edaphic humidity. In wetlands, it was also possible to identify an
edaphohygrophilous series and a geoseries of endoreic water bodies, not exclusive of the mining habitats
Setting priorities for urban forest planning. A comprehensive response to ecological and social needs for the metropolitan area of Rome (Italy)
No full textUrban forests represent key elements of green infrastructure and provide essential ecosystem services in both the ecological and social spheres. Therefore, forestation planning plays a decisive role in the sustainable development strategies of metropolitan areas and addresses the challenge of maintaining biodiversity while improving human health and well-being. The aim of this work is to present a methodological approach that can be used to identify priorities in urban forest planning and can provide comprehensive responses to ecological and social needs in any metropolitan context. The approach, which is based on interdisciplinary principles of landscape ecology, ecosystem geography and dynamic plant sociology, has been adopted in the Municipality of Rome (Italy). The first step entails defining an ecological framework for forestation plans by means of the ecological land classification and assessment of landscape conservation status. The second step entails setting forestation priorities according to both ecological and social criteria. The application of the method proved to effectively select limited areas requiring intervention within an extensive metropolitan area. Furthermore, it provided responses to sustainability issues such as long-term maintenance of restored habitats, landscape perspective of planning, greening of urban agriculture, improvement in urban resilience, and cost-effective improvement in ecosystem services provision
The use of adjacency analysis for quantifying landscape changes
No full textThe analysis of landscape changes in space and time plays an important role in landscape ecology. Analyzing landscape dynamics through time may be crucial for identifying historical and current processes that shape the actual landscapes and for developing predictive landscape models for ecosystem management and conservation. In this view, the propensity of land cover patches to change is at least partially related to the nature of their contact types. The interactions of a given patch with adjacent land cover types affect both land use exploitation by humans and vegetation dynamics. The aim of this paper is to use patch boundary dynamics for describing the landscape changes that occurred in the Lepini Mountains (central Italy) during 1954-2000. Results show an increase in landscape complexity in the Mediterranean land units and a corresponding decrease in landscape complexity in the Temperate land units. This differential trend is due to a complex, human-driven temporal dynamics of Mediterranean ecosystems that generates heterogeneity as opposed to a diffuse landscape abandonment in the Temperate region that leads to a more homogeneous boundary structure
The contribution of vegetation science to current environmental issues at the landscape level in the Mediterranean Region.
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