The DSpace digital repository system captures, stores, indexes, preserves, and distributes digital research material. http://http://dspace.unitus.it:80 2013-05-24T18:29:24Z 2013-05-24T18:29:24Z Corona, Piermaria Ferrari, Barbara Marchetti, Marco Barbati, Anna http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2153 2011-07-01T00:30:46Z 2005-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Risorse forestali e rischio di desertifcazione in Italia. Standard programmatici di gestione Authors: Corona, Piermaria; Ferrari, Barbara; Marchetti, Marco; Barbati, Anna Abstract: Saggio monografico frutto di approfondite indagini riguardanti le foreste di alcune delle più aride regioni italiane, il cui obiettivo principale è illustrare il ruolo della gestione forestale nella lotta alla desertificazione in Italia e proporre, altresì, una strategia di prevenzione, contrasto e mitigazione attraverso standard programmatici appositamente elaborati

2005-12-31T23:00:00Z Corona, Piermaria Ferrari, Barbara Iovino, Francesco La Mantia, Tommaso Barbati, Anna http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2152 2011-07-01T00:30:48Z 2008-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Rimboschimenti e lotta alla desertificazione in Italia Authors: Corona, Piermaria; Ferrari, Barbara; Iovino, Francesco; La Mantia, Tommaso; Barbati, Anna Abstract: Questa monografia propone una lettura critica sul ruolo attuale del rimboschimento nella prevenzione e mitigazione dei processi di desertificazione in Italia. Le potenzialità del rimboschimento sono inquadrate in una prospettiva multifunzionale e sinergica che comprende le ricadute ambientali di questa attività anche in termini di assorbimento del carbonio atmosferico e potenziamento della biodiversità, oltre che di conservazione del suolo e recupero e riqualificazione di paesaggi degradati. L’obiettivo è delineare una strategia di lotta alla desertificazione applicabile a livello regionale, nel quadro degli strumenti programmatici e di governo del territorio rurale e fornire orientamenti tecnici per la progettazione dei rimboschimenti su terreni degradati

2008-12-31T23:00:00Z Travaglini, Davide Barbati, Anna Chirici, Gherardo Lombardi, Fabio Marchetti, Marco Corona, Piermaria http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2114 2011-06-10T00:30:48Z 2006-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: ForestBIOTA data on deadwood monitoring in Europe Authors: Travaglini, Davide; Barbati, Anna; Chirici, Gherardo; Lombardi, Fabio; Marchetti, Marco; Corona, Piermaria Abstract: Deadwood is a key ecological factor in forest ecosystems. Its occurrence is fundamental since it represents a microhabitat for hundreds of species of invertebrates, fungi, bryophytes, lichens, amphibians, small mammals and birds. In recent years, deadwood has been recognized as a relevant indicator for the assessment and monitoring of forest biodiversity. In this paper the methodology for surveying woody necromass proposed by the ForestBIOTA project under Regulation (EC) No 2152/ 2003 (Forest Focus) is described. The amount of deadwood found on 91 Intensive Monitoring Level II plot of the EU and ICP Forest condition monitoring programme range from 0 to 258 m3 ha71. In the examined areas, total deadwood volume does not differ significantly among forest types, due to the high intra-type variability. On the other hand, its distribution between coarse and fine necromass and among necromass components is highly dependent on forest types. Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.tandf.co.uk/journals/

2006-12-31T23:00:00Z Corona, Piermaria Barbati, Anna Ferrari, Barbara Portoghesi, Luigi http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2140 2011-06-28T00:30:45Z 2010-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Pianificazione ecologica dei sistemi forestali Authors: Corona, Piermaria; Barbati, Anna; Ferrari, Barbara; Portoghesi, Luigi Abstract: Questo testo didattico, focalizzato su piani e programmi deputati al governo delle superfici forestali a diversi livelli di scala nel nostro Paese, è orientato a presentare e discutere il ruolo degli strumenti di pianificazione forestale all’interno del più ampio scenario di strategie e norme per il governo del territorio intessuto dai piani di matrice urbanistico-territoriale e ambientale e dagli strumenti di valutazione ambientale integrata. Chiave di lettura della trattazione è l’applicazione di un approccio ecologico nelle varie fasi del processo di pianificazione. Esso si traduce nel ricorso a strumenti di indagine e di procedure valutative funzionali a: (i) mettere in luce opportunità e limiti da considerare nella gestione dei territori forestali al fine di garantire la durevolezza e riproducibilità dei beni e servizi da essi erogati, dalla scala locale a quella di paesaggio; ciò tenuto anche conto della varietà di regimi di protezione delle aree forestali applicati nel nostro Paese; (ii) garantire la sostenibilità ecologica delle trasformazioni territoriali e, dunque, anche la salvaguardia dei sistemi forestali, mediante strumenti specifici di valutazione e di tutela ambientale integrata. In relazione a ciò uno dei principali obiettivi didattici (e questo rappresenta una novità, almeno con riferimento al panorama della letteratura di settore in Italia) è il tentativo di integrare in un quadro organico e di lettura non eccessivamente specialistica i vari aspetti ecologici, normativo-procedurali e tecnico-gestionali coinvolti.

2010-12-31T23:00:00Z Maselli, Fabio Barbati, Anna Chiesi, Marta Chirici, Gherardo Corona, Piermaria http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2080 2011-06-03T00:30:38Z 2005-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Use of remotely sensed and ancillary data for estimating forest gross primary productivity in Italy Authors: Maselli, Fabio; Barbati, Anna; Chiesi, Marta; Chirici, Gherardo; Corona, Piermaria Abstract: The current paper describes the development and testing of a procedure which can use widely available remotely sensed and ancillary data to assess large-scale patterns of forest productivity in Italy. To reach this objective a straightforward model (C-Fix) was applied which is based on the relationship between photosynthetically active radiation absorbed by plant canopies and relevant gross primary productivity (GPP). The original C-Fix methodology was improved by using more abundant ancillary information and more efficient techniques for NDVI data processing. In particular, two extraction methods were applied to NDVI data, derived from two sensors (NOAA-AVHRR and SPOT-VGT) to feed C-Fix. The accuracy of the model outputs was assessed through comparison with annual and monthly values of forest GPP derived from eight eddy covariance flux towers. The results obtained indicated the superiority of SPOT-VGT over NOAA-AVHRR data and a higher efficiency of the more advanced NDVI extraction method. Globally, the procedure was proved to be of easy and objective implementation and allowed the evaluation of mean productivity levels of existing forests on the national scale. Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.sciencedirect.com

2005-12-31T23:00:00Z Chirici, Gherardo Barbati, Anna Bottalico, Francesca Corona, Piermaria http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2154 2011-07-01T00:30:48Z 2009-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Applications of very high resolution satellite imagery to forest ecosystem assessment Authors: Chirici, Gherardo; Barbati, Anna; Bottalico, Francesca; Corona, Piermaria Abstract: The latest generation of commercial satellite sensors provides image products with very high geometric resolution (VHR). VHR images have been extensively exploited in the last years for monitoring forest ecosystem conditions. This chapter presents a review of applications in several fields: forest assessment, forest mapping, detection of stand structural attributes, forest disturbances, estimation of forest biomass and other biophysical variables. Current scientific knowledge under each issue is discussed and most promising classification techniques and approaches are outlined Description: Il volume è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.ressign.com

2009-12-31T23:00:00Z Maselli, Fabio Moriondo, Marco Chiesi, Marta Chirici, Gherardo Puletti, Nicola Barbati, Anna Corona, Piermaria http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2133 2011-06-14T00:30:55Z 2008-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Evaluating the effects of environmental changes on the gross primary production of italian forests Authors: Maselli, Fabio; Moriondo, Marco; Chiesi, Marta; Chirici, Gherardo; Puletti, Nicola; Barbati, Anna; Corona, Piermaria Abstract: A ten-year data-set descriptive of Italian forest gross primary production (GPP) has been recently constructed by the application of Modified C-Fix, a parametric model driven by remote sensing and ancillary data. That data-set is currently being used to develop multivariate regression models which link the inter-year GPP variations of five forest types (white fir, beech, chestnut, deciduous and evergreen oaks) to seasonal values of temperature and precipitation. The five models obtained, which explain from 52% to 88% of the interyear GPP variability, are then applied to predict the effects of expected environmental changes (+2 °C and increased CO2 concentration). The results show a variable response of forest GPP to the simulated climate change, depending on the main ecosystem features. In contrast, the effects of increasing CO2 concentration are always positive and similar to those given by a combination of the two environmental factors. These findings are analyzed with reference to previous studies on the subject, particularly concerning Mediterranean environments. The analysis confirms the plausibility of the scenarios obtained, which can cast light on the important issue of forest carbon pool variations under expected global changes.

2008-12-31T23:00:00Z Barbati, Anna Lamonaca, Andrea Melini, Davide Nocentini, Susanna Corona, Piermaria http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2165 2011-07-22T00:30:20Z 2007-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Valutazione multicriteriale della suscettività a interventi di rinaturalizzazione dei rimboschimenti di pino nero e dei soprassuoli di cerro in Toscana Authors: Barbati, Anna; Lamonaca, Andrea; Melini, Davide; Nocentini, Susanna; Corona, Piermaria Abstract: La rinaturalizzazione è uno degli orientamenti colturali di riferimento della gestione sostenibile di formazioni forestali semplificate nella composizione e nella struttura. La pianificazione degli interventi su area vasta può essere utilmente supportata da informazioni georeferenziate sulle condizioni di suscettività alla rinaturalizzazione dei complessi boscati. Nel presente lavoro si applica un approccio multicriteriale alla mappatura della suscettività a interventi di rinaturalizzazione dei rimboschimenti di pino nero (Pinus nigra Arn.) e soprassuoli di cerro (Quercus cerris L.) presenti in Toscana. La valutazione è basata su un approccio fuzzy, mediante costruzione di funzioni di appartenenza in grado di esprimere il variare delle condizioni di suscettività in rapporto ai seguenti fattori mappati su base raster: i) efficienza ecobiologica del popolamento forestale, stimata mediante un indice guidato da dati telerilevati, e utilizzata per definire il grado di opportunità colturale dell’intervento; ii) fattori di contesto (grado di adiacenza del soprassuolo con altre tipologie forestali e diversità fisionomica della copertura forestale a scala locale) intesi come fattori in grado di rafforzare (o depotenziare) l’opportunità colturale dell’intervento; iii) accessibilità e dimensione del soprassuolo, condizionanti la fattibilità operativa dell’intervento. I valori fuzzy dei singoli fattori sono combinati mediante una funzione moltiplicativa in un indice sintetico di suscettività, per individuare a scala vasta ambiti territoriali a cui accordare priorità di intervento. Su scala comprensoriale o aziendale, la disponibilità di indicatori più puntuali può permettere di collegare in maniera coerente gli indirizzi della pianificazione di area vasta alla concreta programmazione degli interventi.

2007-12-31T23:00:00Z Barbati, Anna Chirici, Gherardo Corona, Piermaria Montaghi, Alessandro Travaglini, Davide http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2137 2011-06-14T00:30:55Z 2008-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Area-based assessment of forest standing volume by field measurements and airborne laser scanner data Authors: Barbati, Anna; Chirici, Gherardo; Corona, Piermaria; Montaghi, Alessandro; Travaglini, Davide Abstract: Airborne laser scanning (ALS) is increasingly applied as a tool for extracting forest inventory data. In recent years most applications for the assessment of forest standing volume rely on a single tree recognition approach, which generally gives satisfactory results in coniferous forests. The aim of this paper is to apply a rasterbased approach for the assessment of forest standing volume based on field measurements and a Digital Canopy Model (DCM) derived from ALS data. In addition, we explore the potential of hot spot analysis of DCM data for automatic forest gap detection, as a means to improve the accuracy of the estimation of forest standing volume by traditional estimation methods. Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.tandf.co.uk/journals/

2008-12-31T23:00:00Z Maselli, Fabio Chiesi, Marta Barbati, Anna Corona, Piermaria http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2132 2011-06-14T00:30:54Z 2009-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Assessment of forest net primary production through the elaboration of multisource ground and remote sensing data Authors: Maselli, Fabio; Chiesi, Marta; Barbati, Anna; Corona, Piermaria Abstract: This paper builds on previous work by our research group which demonstrated the applicability of a parametric model, Modified C-Fix, for the monitoring of Mediterranean forests. Specifically, the model is capable of combining ground and remote sensing data to estimate forest gross primary production (GPP) on various spatial and temporal scales. Modified C-Fix is currently applied to all Italian forest areas using a previously produced data set of meteorological data and NDVI imagery descriptive of a ten-year period (1999–2008). The obtained GPP estimates are further elaborated to derive forest net primary production (NPP) averages for 20 Italian Regions. Such estimates, converted into current annual increment of standing volume (CAI) through the use of specific coefficients, are compared to the data of a recent national forest inventory (INFC). The results obtained indicate that the modelling approach tends to overestimate the ground CAI values for all forest types. The correction of a drawback in the current model implementation leads to reduce this overestimation to about 9% of the INFC increments. The possible origins of this overestimation are investigated by examining the results of previous studies and of older forest inventories. The implications of using different NPP estimation methods are finally discussed in view of assessing the forest carbon budget on a national basis.

2009-12-31T23:00:00Z Corona, Piermaria Lombardi, Fabio Chirici, Gherardo Marchetti, Marco Tognetti, Roberto Lasserre, Bruno Barbati, Anna Ferrari, Barbara Di Paolo, Silvia Giuliarelli, Diego Iovino, Francesco Nicolaci, Antonino Bianchi, Livio Maltoni, Alberto Travaglini, Davide http://hdl.handle.net/2067/1902 2011-04-12T00:30:21Z 2009-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Deadwood in forest stands close to old-growthness under Mediterranean conditions in the Italian Peninsula Authors: Corona, Piermaria; Lombardi, Fabio; Chirici, Gherardo; Marchetti, Marco; Tognetti, Roberto; Lasserre, Bruno; Barbati, Anna; Ferrari, Barbara; Di Paolo, Silvia; Giuliarelli, Diego; Iovino, Francesco; Nicolaci, Antonino; Bianchi, Livio; Maltoni, Alberto; Travaglini, Davide Abstract: Considering that indicators of old-growth features can vary across the European ecoregions, this paper provides some results to identify the distinctive traits of old-growth forests in the Mediterranean ecoregion. Deadwood occurrence as indicator of naturalness is investigated in some remote forest areas that have developed in absence of anthropogenic disturbance over the past few decades. Eleven study sites across the Italian peninsula were elected and records of deadwood were carried out in 1-ha size plots. Deadwood volume, deadwood types and decay stages were inventoried in the selected sites. The amounts of deadwood indicate a large variability among the investigated forest stands: the total volume ranged between 2 and 143 m3ha-1, with an average of 60 m3ha-1. Lying deadwood is the most abundant component of deadwood in the investigated forests, due to the natural mortality occurring in the stands in relation to the processes established in the last decades. On the contrary, stumps are the less represented type of deadwood in almost all the study areas. All the decay classes are present in each study site. The amount of deadwood in Southern Europe, even if lower than that reported for North and Central European countries, could have a different meaning due to the faster decay occurring in Mediterranean forest ecosystems. For this reason, old-growth features and the characteristics of each indicator should be framed and referred to well-defined climatic and biogeographic contexts. Distinctively, under the conditions here investigated, three main deadwood features prove to characterize forest stands close to old-growthness: a ratio of dead to living wood not lower than 10%; lying deadwood much more abundant than the standing one; large range of deadwood size and decay classes across all the deadwood components.

2009-12-31T23:00:00Z Barbati, Anna Corona, Piermaria Carraro, Giovanni Del Favero, Roberto Dissegna, Maurizio Lasen, Cesare Marchetti, Marco http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2156 2011-07-01T00:30:13Z 1998-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Developing biodiversity assessment on a stand forest type management level in north-eastern Italy Authors: Barbati, Anna; Corona, Piermaria; Carraro, Giovanni; Del Favero, Roberto; Dissegna, Maurizio; Lasen, Cesare; Marchetti, Marco Abstract: This paper discusses a simple operative proposal, elaborated by a team of advisers to the Forestry Service of the Veneto administrative region (north-eastern Italy), concerning the definition of stand-level forest type biodiversity indicators and biodiversity oriented management provisions. Such tools are conceived to transfer biodiversity conservation understanding in current forest stand management practices. The developed assessment system is targeted to: maintenance and increase of the variability of forest landscape mosaic; conservation of species variability; creation of resource reservoirs. The following criteria and indicators are taken into consideration: spatial pattern (widespreadness, connectedness, species contagion potential), forest structure (uneven aged stands: percent of trees in three broad diameter classes; even aged stands: number of development stages and surface of each development stage), herbs/shrubs species (average, minimum and maximum number of species; average number of short-lived herb/ shrub species recorded in minimal anthropic disturbance conditions; dynamic trend in the number of herb/shrub species), bird species (average, minimum and maximum number of species); overall naturalistic quality (flora; vegetation; fauna). Such indicators are proposed as biodiversity reference standards for each forest type in the considered region: they provide practical baseline information with which forest stand management efficiency in achieving biodiversity targets can be compared.

1998-12-31T23:00:00Z Di Paolo, Silvia Giuliarelli, Diego Ferrari, Barbara Barbati, Anna Corona, Piermaria http://hdl.handle.net/2067/1903 2011-04-12T00:30:21Z 2009-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Support of multispectral very high solution remotely sensed imagery for old-growth beech forest detection. Authors: Di Paolo, Silvia; Giuliarelli, Diego; Ferrari, Barbara; Barbati, Anna; Corona, Piermaria Abstract: In the Mediterranean basin human activity has modified landscapes for millennia,nevertheless there are few remote forest areas relatively untouched long enough from direct anthropogenic disturbance to develop old-growth attributes. The aim of this note is to assess the potential of QuickBird (QB) satellite multispectral imagery for detecting old-growth forest stands, considering as case study a Mediterranean beech forest in central Italy. The segmentation-based analysis of QB image proved to be a promising tool to detect scaledependent pattern of forest structural heterogeneity. Values of remotely sensed attributes are compared in old-growth and not-old-growth stands: the statistical analysis showed that oldgrowthness is associated to the variability of multispectral reflectance from the image objects (polygons). Green band variability, notably, expressed by Ratio_band_2 has proven to be helpful for predicting old-growthness.

2009-12-31T23:00:00Z Barbati, Anna Corona, Piermaria Portoghesi, Luigi Iovino, Francesco Marchetti, Marco Menguzzato, Giuliano http://hdl.handle.net/2067/1904 2011-07-21T06:51:54Z 2009-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: The application of the ecosystem approach through sustainable forest management: an Italian case study. Authors: Barbati, Anna; Corona, Piermaria; Portoghesi, Luigi; Iovino, Francesco; Marchetti, Marco; Menguzzato, Giuliano Abstract: During the last decades adapting silvicultural systems to a changed society, increasingly aware of the multifunctional role of forests, was a much debated issue in Italy. Stemming from this discussion is the systemic silviculture concept, an adaptive forest management tool aimed at cultivating the forest as a self-organizing system and focusing on sustaining its functional efficiency as the best way to enhance forest multi-functionality. This concept has much connection with the Ecosystem Approach defined by the Convention on Biological Diversity as a strategy for the integrated management of land, water and living resources that promotes conservation and sustainable use in an equitable way. In the following a case study is presented where the principles of systemic silviculture are implemented in the management of private and common forest properties in the Serre mountains of the Calabria Region (Italy); relationships with the Ecosystem Approach principles are analyzed in order to evaluate to what extent systemic silviculture can be regarded as a means to bring the EA to the implementation level.

2009-12-31T23:00:00Z Corona, Piermaria Barbati, Anna Arianoutsou, Margarita De Las Heras, Jorge Fernandes, P. Moreira, F. Papageorgiou, K. Vallejo, Ramon V. Xanthopoulos, Gavriil http://hdl.handle.net/2067/1944 2011-05-30T06:27:50Z 2009-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Post-fire forest management in southern Europe: a COST action for gathering and disseminating scientific knowledge. Authors: Corona, Piermaria; Barbati, Anna; Arianoutsou, Margarita; De Las Heras, Jorge; Fernandes, P.; Moreira, F.; Papageorgiou, K.; Vallejo, Ramon V.; Xanthopoulos, Gavriil Abstract: Every year about 45 000 forest fires occur in Europe, burning half a million hectares of forests and rural lands; between 1995 and 2004, more than 4 million hectares burned in the Mediterranean Region alone. Post-fire management of burned areas has been given much lesser attention than combating or preventing fires. However, important questions raise public concern and call for sound scientific knowledge to undertake appropriate post-fire actions: e.g., how to evaluate fire damages in economical terms? How to manage burned areas? Is it possible to establish, in the long-term, less flammable and more fire resilient forests and landscapes? To address these questions, a network of researchers and practitioners working in the field of fire ecology and forest management from all around Europe has been established in the frame of “COST Action FP0701-Post-Fire Forest Management in Southern Europe”, supported by the European Union Research and Technology Development Framework Program. The Action aims to: i) develop and disseminate scientifically based decision criteria for planning post-fire forest management, from the stand to the landscape level; ii) translate this scientific knowledge into management practices; iii) connect scientists and stakeholders for exchanging experiences, evaluating these practices, and putting them into practice. To achieve these objectives the scientific groups involved will a) review and summarize the current scientific knowledge on post-fire management in Europe, by gathering and evaluating the results of previous and ongoing research; b) translate this knowledge into technical recommendations, by producing thematic reports, a book on the state-of-the-art of scientific knowledge on post fire assessment, and an electronic handbook on post-fire restoration; c) disseminate this knowledge to stakeholders, practitioners and decision makers. Besides publications and a project website already active (http://uaeco.biol.uoa.gr/cost/), training schools and one major conference will be organized. Although focused on Southern Europe, the outcomes of this Action will be crucial for central and northern European countries as well, as climate change and land use changes often leading to more homogeneous and expanding forest areas are already increasing fire hazard in those regions.

2009-12-31T23:00:00Z Chirici, Gherardo Barbati, Anna Corona, Piermaria Marchetti, Marco Maselli, Fabio Bertini, Roberta http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2086 2011-06-07T00:30:50Z 2007-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Non-parametric and parametric methods using satellite images for estimating growing stock volume in alpine and Mediterranean forest ecosystems Authors: Chirici, Gherardo; Barbati, Anna; Corona, Piermaria; Marchetti, Marco; Maselli, Fabio; Bertini, Roberta Abstract: This paper describes applications of non-parametric and parametric methods for estimating forest growing stock volume using Landsat images on the basis of data measured in the field, integrated with ancillary information. Several k-Nearest Neighbors (k-NN) algorithm configurations were tested in two study areas in Italy belonging to Mediterranean and Alpine ecosystems. Field data were acquired by the regional forest inventory and forest management plans, and satellite images are from Landsat 5 TM and Landsat 7 ETM+. The paper describes the data used, the methodologies adopted and the results achieved in terms of pixel level accuracy of forest growing stock volume estimates. The results show that several factors affect estimation accuracy when using the k-NN method. For the two test areas a total of 3500 different configurations of the k-NN algorithm were systematically tested by changing the number and type of spectral and ancillary input variables, type of multidimensional distance measures, number of nearest neighbors and methods for spectral feature extraction using the leave-one-out (LOO) procedure. The best k-NN configurations were then used for pixel level estimation; the accuracy was estimated with a bootstrapping procedure; and the results were compared to estimates obtained using parametric regression methods implemented on the same data set. The best k-NN growing stock volume pixel level estimates in the Alpine area have a Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) ranging between 74 and 96 m3 ha− 1 (respectively, 22% and 28% of the mean measured value) and between 106 and 135 m3 ha− 1 (respectively, 44% and 63% of the mean measured value) in the Mediterranean area. On the whole, the results cast a promising light on the use of non-parametric techniques for forest attribute estimation and mapping with accuracy high enough to support forest planning activities in such complex landscapes. The results of the LOO analyses also highlight the importance of a local empirical optimization phase of the k-NN procedure before defining the best algorithm configuration. In the tests performed the pixel level accuracy increased, depending on the k-NN configuration, as much as 100%. Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.sciencedirect.com

2007-12-31T23:00:00Z Lamonaca, Andrea Corona, Piermaria Barbati, Anna http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2087 2011-06-07T00:30:50Z 2007-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Exploring forest structural complexity by multi-scale segmentation of VHR imagery Authors: Lamonaca, Andrea; Corona, Piermaria; Barbati, Anna Abstract: Forests are complex ecological systems, characterised by multiple-scale structural and dynamical patterns which are not inferable from a system description that spans only a narrow window of resolution; this makes their investigation a difficult task using standard field sampling protocols. We segment a QuickBird image covering a beech forest in an initial stage of old-growthness – showing, accordingly, a good degree of structural complexity – into three segmentation levels. We apply field-based diversity indices of tree size, spacing, species assemblage to quantify structural heterogeneity amongst forest regions delineated by segmentation. The aim of the study is to evaluate, on a statistical basis, the relationships between spectrally delineated image segments and observed spatial heterogeneity in forest structure, including gaps in the outer canopy. Results show that: some 45% of the segments generated at the coarser segmentation scale (level 1) are surrounded by structurally different neighbours; level 2 segments distinguish spatial heterogeneity in forest structure in about 63% of level 1 segments; level 3 image segments detect better canopy gaps, rather than differences in the spatial pattern of the investigated structural indices. Results support also the idea of a mixture of macro and micro structural heterogeneity within the beech forest: large size populations of trees homogeneous for the examined structural indices at the coarser segmentation level, when analysed at a finer scale, are internally heterogeneous; and vice versa. Findings from this study demonstrate that multiresolution segmentation is able to delineate scale-dependent patterns of forest structural heterogeneity, even in an initial stage of old-growth structural differentiation. This tool has therefore a potential to improve the sampling design of field surveys aimed at characterizing forest structural complexity across multiple spatio-temporal scales. Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.sciencedirect.com

2007-12-31T23:00:00Z Marcus, Lindner Maroschek, Michael Netherer, Sigrid Kremer, Antoine Barbati, Anna Garcia-Gonzalo, Jordi Seidl, Rupert Delzon, Sylvain Corona, Piermaria Kolström, Marja Lexer, Manfred J. Marchetti, Marco http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2067 2011-05-20T15:02:31Z 2009-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Climate change impacts, adaptive capacity, and vulnerability of European forest ecosystems Authors: Marcus, Lindner; Maroschek, Michael; Netherer, Sigrid; Kremer, Antoine; Barbati, Anna; Garcia-Gonzalo, Jordi; Seidl, Rupert; Delzon, Sylvain; Corona, Piermaria; Kolström, Marja; Lexer, Manfred J.; Marchetti, Marco Abstract: This study compiles and summarizes the existing knowledge about observed and projected impacts of climate change on forests in Europe. Forests will have to adapt not only to changes in mean climate variables but also to increased variability with greater risk of extreme weather events, such as prolonged drought, storms and floods. Sensitivity, potential impacts, adaptive capacity, and vulnerability to climate change are reviewed for European forests. The most important potential impacts of climate change on forest goods and services are summarized for the Boreal, Temperate Oceanic, Temperate Continental, Mediterranean, and mountainous regions. Especially in northern and western Europe the increasing atmospheric CO2 content and warmer temperatures are expected to result in positive effects on forest growth and wood production, at least in the short–medium term. On the other hand, increasing drought and disturbance risks will cause adverse effects. These negative impacts are very likely to outweigh positive trends in southern and eastern Europe. From west to east, the drought risk increases. In the Mediterranean regions productivity is expected to decline due to strongly increased droughts and fire risks. Adaptive capacity consists of the inherent adaptive capacity of trees and forest ecosystems and of socio-economic factors determining the capability to implement planned adaptation. The adaptive capacity in the forest sector is relatively large in the Boreal and the Temperate Oceanic regions, more constrained by socio-economic factors in the Temperate Continental, and most limited in the Mediterranean region where large forest areas are only extensively managed or unmanaged. Potential impacts and risks are best studied and understood with respect to wood production. It is clear that all other goods and services provided by European forests will also be impacted by climate change, but much less knowledge is available to quantify these impacts. Understanding of adaptive capacity and regional vulnerability to climate change in European forests is not well developed and requires more focussed research efforts. An interdisciplinary research agenda integrated with monitoring networks and projection models is needed to provide information at all levels of decision making, from policy development to the management unit.

2009-12-31T23:00:00Z Barbati, Anna Corona, Piermaria Marchetti, Marco http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2112 2011-06-10T00:30:44Z 2006-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: A forest typology for monitoring sustainable forest management: The case of European Forest Types Authors: Barbati, Anna; Corona, Piermaria; Marchetti, Marco Abstract: Sustainable forest management (SFM) is presently widely accepted as the overriding objective for forest policy and practice. Regional processes are in progress all over the world to develop and implement criteria and indicators of SFM. In continental Europe, a set of 35 Pan-European indicators has been endorsed under the Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe (MCPFE) to measure progress towards SFM in the 44 countries of the region. The formulation of seven indicators (forest area, growing stock, age structure/diameter distribution, deadwood, tree species composition, damaging agents, naturalness) requires national data to be reported by forest types. Within the vast European forest area the values taken by these indicators show a considerable range of variation, due to variable natural conditions and anthropogenic influences. Given this variability, it is very difficult to grasp the meaning of these indicators when taken out of their ecological background. The paper discusses the concepts behind, and the requirements of, a classification more soundly ecologically framed and suitable for MCPFE reporting than the three (un-informative) classes adopted so far: broadleaved forest, coniferous forest, mixed broadleaved and coniferous forest. We propose a European Forest Types scheme structured into a reasonably higher number of classes, that would improve the specificity of the indicators reported under the MCPFE process and its understanding. Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.tandf.co.uk/journals/

2006-12-31T23:00:00Z Barbati, Anna Chirici, Gherardo http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2166 2011-07-22T00:30:17Z 2008-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Analisi della struttura spaziale e pianificazione del paesaggio agro-forestale: prospettive d’integrazione Authors: Barbati, Anna; Chirici, Gherardo Abstract: L’ecologia del paesaggio offre un ampio spettro di tecniche d’analisi applicabili a cartografie di uso e copertura del suolo per derivare informazioni quantitative su una varietà di aspetti della configurazione spaziale del mosaico paesistico; tra gli altri, misure relative alla estensione, forma, e livello di frammentazione spaziale delle superfici forestali (o di altre categorie di habitat naturali e seminaturali) sono ritenute utili a rispondere a requisiti informativi tipicamente formulati nel contesto di politiche di conservazione della biodiversità. Analisi della struttura del paesaggio possono anche supportare l’individuazione di ambiti territoriali omogenei per valore paesaggistico da individuare nel piano paesaggistico regionale, rispetto ai quali pianificare obiettivi di qualità paesaggistica e prescrizioni per la tutela e l'uso del territorio (vd. D. Lgs. 42/2004, Codice Urbani). Le metodologie di analisi e il monitoraggio della struttura spaziale del paesaggio agro-forestale sono ormai numerose e consolidate; tuttavia, solo di recente i risultati di questi studi hanno cominciato a supportare e orientare politiche di pianificazione del territorio per la formulazione di strategie di sviluppo territoriale differenziate in rapporto alle esigenze di conservazione degli habitat e della biodiversità e di salvaguardia del paesaggio calibrate in base alle specificità dei singoli territori. In particolare, il tema delle reti ecologiche, è divenuto oggetto specifico di pianificazione all’interno degli strumenti di area vasta. In questa prospettiva il presente contributo intende delineare alcune riflessioni su come raccordare le conoscenze dell’ecologia del paesaggio alla formulazione di obiettivi di salvaguardia e valorizzazione del paesaggio, tenendo conto della configurazione attuale del sistema delle pianificazioni aventi competenza in materia di governo del paesaggio. Focalizzando l’attenzione su le problematiche di governo del paesaggio più tipiche del paesaggio agro-forestale, vengono inoltre prospettate alcune considerazioni sul possibile ruolo della gestione forestale come strumento d’attuazione delle previsioni inerenti la tutela e la riqualificazione del paesaggio espresse dagli strumenti di pianificazione di area vasta.

2008-12-31T23:00:00Z Chirici, Gherardo Chiesi, Marta Pasqui, Massimiliano Corona, Piermaria Salvati, Riccardo Barbati, Anna Lombardi, Fabio Maselli, Fabio http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2294 2012-08-01T07:42:46Z 2010-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Stima dei flussi di carbonio degli ecosistemi forestali italiani attraverso dati telerilevati ed ancillari Authors: Chirici, Gherardo; Chiesi, Marta; Pasqui, Massimiliano; Corona, Piermaria; Salvati, Riccardo; Barbati, Anna; Lombardi, Fabio; Maselli, Fabio Abstract: Le foreste rivestono un ruolo fondamentale nell’ambito dei cicli bio-geo-chimici di molti elementi quali, tra gli altri, azoto e carbonio. In particolare possono svolgere l’importante funzione di assorbitori di carbonio, sottraendo CO2 dall’atmosfera. Per questo, ed in vista dei cambiamenti climatici in atto sul nostro pianeta, un obiettivo importante è quello di quantificare l’effettivo accumulo di carbonio stoccato nelle foreste italiane. A questo ambisce il progetto FIRB C_FORSAT finanziato dal MIUR fino al 2013. Tra le metodologie proposte per raggiungere tale scopo (tecniche di eddy covariance, immagini da satellite e modelli bio-geochimici), quelle basate sull’impiego di modelli di simulazione dell’ecosistema unite all’utilizzo di dati telerilevati risultano le più promettenti. Esse infatti uniscono la possibilità offerta dai modelli di stimare tutti i processi dell’ecosistema (GPP, NPP ed NEE) basandosi sulla conoscenza delle specie analizzate e dell’ambiente in cui si trovano con quella di ottenere informazioni su vasta scala spaziale e con alto grado di ripetizione grazie all’uso di dati tele rilevati. A questo scopo il modello bio-geochimico BIOME-BGC opportunamente calibrato e validato per le principali classi forestali italiane appare particolarmente utile. L’utilizzo del modello in forma spazializzata su base nazionale richiede però la disponibilità di una vasta disponibilità di strati informativi. Tra questi i dati meteorologici giornalieri sono particolarmente critici, in quanto non risultano ancora disponibili sul territorio nazionale. Il contributo richiama brevemente la metodologia utilizzata nel progetto e si sofferma in particolare sull’approccio individuato per la generazione della banca dati meteo spazializzata ed il suo utilizzo per simulare il comportamento della macchia mediterranea.; Forests play an important role within numerous bio-geo-chemical cycles among which those of nitrogen and carbon. In particular, forests can behave as carbon sink by removing CO2 from the atmosphere. For this reason, and in view of global climate changes, it is important to quantify the amount of carbon stocked within Italian forest ecosystems. This is the objective of the FIRB project C_FORSAT financed by MIUR up to 2013. Among the available methodologies (eddy-covariance, remote sensing and bio-geo-chemical models), those based on the combined use of ecosystem simulation model and remotely sensed data are the most promising. They in fact enable to estimate all ecosystem processes (GPP, NPP and NEE) based on the knowledge of the species and the environment in which these live. Moreover, they offer the possibility to obtain spatial information with a high temporal frequency. The model BIOME-BGC is particularly useful to this aim after proper calibration and validation for the main Italian forest types. It requires numerous data layers, among which daily meteorological data are the most difficult to obtain for the whole national territory. This contribution summirezes the main methodological steps and focuses on the creation of a daily meteorological database, which is utilized to drive the simulation of Mediterranean macchia. Description: La pubblicazione è disponibile all'indirizzo http://www.attiasita.it/ASITA2011/indice_atti.html

2010-12-31T23:00:00Z Mavsar, Robert Varela, Elsa Corona, Piermaria Barbati, Anna Marsh, Graham http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2314 2012-08-06T23:05:15Z 2011-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Economic, Legal and Social Aspects of Post-Fire Management Authors: Mavsar, Robert; Varela, Elsa; Corona, Piermaria; Barbati, Anna; Marsh, Graham Description: Il capitolo, che fa parte del volume "Post-Fire Management and Restoration of Southern European Forests", è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.springer.com

2011-12-31T23:00:00Z Corona, Piermaria Agrimi, Mariagrazia Baffetta, Federica Barbati, Anna Chiriacò, Maria Vincenza Fattorini, Lorenzo Pompei, Enrico Valentini, Riccardo Mattioli, Walter http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2316 2012-08-06T23:05:41Z 2011-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Extending large-scale forest inventories to assess urban forests Authors: Corona, Piermaria; Agrimi, Mariagrazia; Baffetta, Federica; Barbati, Anna; Chiriacò, Maria Vincenza; Fattorini, Lorenzo; Pompei, Enrico; Valentini, Riccardo; Mattioli, Walter Abstract: Urban areas are continuously expanding today, extending their influence on an increasingly large proportion of woods and trees located in or nearby urban and urbanizing areas, the socalled urban forests. Although these forests have the potential for significantly improving the quality the urban environment and the well-being of the urban population, data to quantify the extent and characteristics of urban forests are still lacking or fragmentary on a large scale. In this regard, an expansion of the domain of multipurpose forest inventories like National Forest Inventories (NFIs) towards urban forests would be required. To this end, it would be convenient to exploit the same sampling scheme applied in NFIs to assess the basic features of urban forests. This paper considers approximately unbiased estimators of abundance and coverage of urban forests, together with estimators of the corresponding variances, which can be achieved from the first phase of most largescale forest inventories. A simulation study is carried out in order to check the performance of the considered estimators under various situations involving the spatial distribution of the urban forests over the study area. An application is worked out on the data from the Italian NFI. Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.springer.com

2011-12-31T23:00:00Z Barbati, Anna Corona, Piermaria Mattioli, Walter Quatrini, Alessandro http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2326 2012-09-20T23:05:11Z 2011-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Biomassa forestale per la produzione di energia termica: un modello di analisi per l'Alta valle dell'Aniene Authors: Barbati, Anna; Corona, Piermaria; Mattioli, Walter; Quatrini, Alessandro Abstract: Il continuo aumento della domanda di energia e la modesta autosufficienza energetica spingono le politiche energetiche dell’Italia, nel quadro degli impegni 20-20-20, verso un crescente impiego di biomasse forestali in progetti di produzione energetica delocalizzata e sostenibile. Per identificare opzioni progettuali in grado di soddisfare in modo sostenibile la domanda di energie rinnovabili è necessario produrre stime sufficientemente attendibili sulla disponibilità di biomasse forestali destinabili all’uso energetico, definendo criteri di sostenibilità nel prelievo calibrati sul contesto ambientale e socio-economico locale. In tale logica, il lavoro presenta un caso di studio finalizzato a quantificare nel comprensorio forestale di circa 27.000 ha dell’Alta valle dell’Aniene (Italia centrale) la quantità di biomassa forestale destinabile alla produzione di energia termica. La quantità annua di biomassa forestale destinabile alla produzione di energia, stimata attraverso un modello conservativo basato su criteri di utilizzazione forestale sostenibile, è pari a circa il 18% (21.000 t s.s. anno-1) della produttività annua delle foreste del comprensorio e i quantitativi unitari di biomassa ritraibile risultano pari a circa 2 t s.s. ha-1anno-1. La disponibilità complessiva di biomassa nelle aree maggiormente idonee sotto il profilo dell’accessibilità è di quasi 9.000 t s.s. anno-1, quantitativo sufficiente per implementare una filiera locale di produzione del cippato in grado di alimentare alcune decine di impianti di riscaldamento di edifici pubblici e privati.; Italy’s energy policy, in the framework of the 20-20-20 commitments, is oriented towards the increasing exploitation of wood biomass for local energy production projects; this is due to rising demand for energy and low self-sufficiency of the country. To support renewable energy targets in a sustainable way, reliable estimates on the wood biomass technically available for energy production are needed, taking into account local environmental and socio-economic constraints. This paper presents a case study aimed at assessing the wood biomass technically available for energy generation. The sample area is the forest (approximately 27.000 ha) of the Upper valley of Aniene River (Central Italy). The annual amount of wood biomass available for energy generation is estimated using a conservative model. It is based on environmentalcompatible and sustainable wood harvesting criteria. The available wood biomass is approximately 18% (21.000 t s.s. year-1) of the total forest productivity of the area, corresponding to about 2 t s.s. ha-1year-1. The overall biomass available in the most accessible areas is nearly 9.000 t s.s. year-1. This would be enough to support the development of a local wood-fuel energy chain, to feed several heating plants of public and private buildings.

2011-12-31T23:00:00Z Marchetti, Marco Sallustio, Lorenzo Ottaviano, Marco Barbati, Anna Corona, Piermaria Tognetti, Roberto Zavattero, Laura Capotorti, Giulia http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2338 2013-02-08T00:05:23Z 2011-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Carbon sequestration by forests in the National Parks of Italy Authors: Marchetti, Marco; Sallustio, Lorenzo; Ottaviano, Marco; Barbati, Anna; Corona, Piermaria; Tognetti, Roberto; Zavattero, Laura; Capotorti, Giulia Abstract: Recent attempts to mitigate global change have brought forestry-based carbon (C) sequestration into sharp focus due to its potential to absorb CO2 from the atmosphere. However, the consequences of actual forest management practices on C storage capacity are still controversial to a certain extent. Under such a perspective, a distinctive relevant issue concerns the management of forest ecosystems within areas specifically designated for nature conservation. From the analysis of biomass data from forests in the National Parks of Italy, we found that the average forest C stock and sink per unit area is relatively higher within National Parks (81.21 and 2.18 tons ha71, respectively) than on the overall national territory (76.11 and 1.12 tons ha71 year71, respectively). The analysis confirms the influence of ecological conditions and management approach on C sequestration capacity. Although the results of the proposed assessment approach have to be considered as rough estimates, the trial proves interesting, given the relative lack of specific information, at least on a large scale, about C stocks and sinks within forest areas designated for nature conservation, and the direct comparison with those forest areas not designated to such an end. The C storage capacity can be enhanced by increasing the productivity of forests, minimizing the disturbance to stand structure and composition. Extending conservation strategies adopted in National Parks to other forest areas of the national territory would allow the restoration of C sequestration potential, where unsustainable management practices have degraded relatively large stocks of biomass. Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.tandfonline.com

2011-12-31T23:00:00Z Corona, Piermaria Chirici, Gherardo McRoberts, Ronald E. Winter, Susan Barbati, Anna http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2347 2013-03-01T00:05:46Z 2010-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Contribution of large-scale forest inventories to biodiversity assessment and monitoring Authors: Corona, Piermaria; Chirici, Gherardo; McRoberts, Ronald E.; Winter, Susan; Barbati, Anna Abstract: Statistically-designed inventories and biodiversity monitoring programs are gaining relevance for biological conservation and natural resources management. Mandated periodic surveys provide unique opportunities to identify and satisfy natural resources management information needs. However, this is not an end in itself but rather is the beginning of a process that should lead to sound decision-making in biodiversity conservation. Forest inventories are currently evolving towards multipurpose resource surveys and are broadening their scope in several directions: (i) expansion of the target population to include non-traditional attributes such as trees outside the forest and urban forests; (ii) forest carbon pools and carbon sequestration estimation; (iii) assessment of forest health; and (iv) inclusion of additional variables such as biodiversity attributes that are not directly related to timber assessment and wood harvesting. There is an on-going debate regarding the role of forest inventories in biodiversity assessment and monitoring. This paper presents a review on the topic that aims at providing updated knowledge on the current contribution of forest inventories to the assessment and monitoring of forest biodiversity conditions on a large scale. Specific objectives are fourfold: (i) to highlight the types of forest biodiversity indicators that can be estimated from data collected in the framework of standard forest inventories and the implications of different sampling methods on the estimation of the indicators; (ii) to outline current possibilities for harmonized estimation of biodiversity indicators in Europe from National Forest Inventory data; (iii) to show the added value for forest biodiversity monitoring of framing biodiversity indicators into ecologically meaningful forest type units; and (iv) to examine the potential of forest inventory sample data for estimating landscape biodiversity metrics Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.elsevier.com

2010-12-31T23:00:00Z Kolström, Marja Marcus Lindner, Marcus Maroschek, Michael Seidl, Rupert Lexer, Manfred J. Netherer, Sigrid Kremer, Antoine Delzon, Sylvain Barbati, Anna Marchetti, Marco Corona, Piermaria http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2339 2013-02-06T08:46:37Z 2010-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Reviewing the Science and Implementation of Climate Change Adaptation Measures in European Forestry Authors: Kolström, Marja; Marcus Lindner, Marcus; Maroschek, Michael; Seidl, Rupert; Lexer, Manfred J.; Netherer, Sigrid; Kremer, Antoine; Delzon, Sylvain; Barbati, Anna; Marchetti, Marco; Corona, Piermaria Abstract: Developing adaptation measures in forestry is an urgent task because the forests regenerated today will have to cope with climate conditions that may drastically changeduring the life of the trees in the stand. This paper presents a comprehensive review of potential adaptation options in forestry in Europe based on three pillars: a review of the scientific literature, an analysis of current national response strategies, and an expert assessment based on a database compiled in the COST Action ECHOES (Expected Climate Change and Options for European Silviculture). The adaptation measures include responses to both risks and opportunities created by climate change and address all stages of forestry operations. Measures targeted to reduce vulnerability to climate change may either aim to reduce forest sensitivity to adverse climate change impacts or increase adaptive capacity to cope with the changing environmental conditions. Adaptation measures mitigating drought and fire risk such as selection of more drought resistant species and genotypes are crucial. For adaptation to be successful it is of the utmost importance to disseminate the knowledge of suitable adaptation measures to all decision makers from the practice to the policy level. The analysis of the ECHOES database demonstrates that this challenge is well recognized in many European countries. Uncertainty about the full extent of climate change impacts and the suitability of adaptation measures creates a need for monitoring and further research. A better understanding of how to increase adaptive capacity is also needed, as well as regional vulnerability assessments which are crucial for targeting planned adaptation measures.

2010-12-31T23:00:00Z Barbati, Anna Corona, Piermaria Salvati, Luca Gasparella, Lorenza http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2336 2013-02-08T00:05:17Z 2012-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Natural forest expansion into suburban countryside: Gained ground for a green infrastructure? Authors: Barbati, Anna; Corona, Piermaria; Salvati, Luca; Gasparella, Lorenza Abstract: Understanding patterns of natural forest expansion in rural regions under the influence of urbanization processes is crucial for integrated spatial planning across the urban-to-rural gradient. As a matter of fact, forest expansion is the only natural process that may counteract the consumption of the ecosystem capital and ecosystems services of rural lands due to uncontrolled urban sprawl. The paper addresses this topic in the paradigmatic case study of the countryside of Rome (Italy), characterized by counter dynamics of forest expansion and suburbanization. Morphological Spatial Pattern Analysis (MSPA) is applied to classify the forest landscape structure twice (1974 and 2008) according to seven categories (core, islet, perforation, edge, loop, bridge, branch) with different potential functional role as elements of a green infrastructure. Main findings are: (i) forest cover increased from 11% to 16% between 1974 and 2008; forest land uptake exceeds 4% of total study area, but shows a slower pace than the growth of built-up areas (10%); (ii) forest expansion has been to a large extent achieved by “sprawling” of islets (1.6% of the study area) along the stream network; (iii) more compact forest expansion has taken place on 0.2% of the study area in the form of additions to existing core areas or creation of new ones and (iv) the establishment of a network of protected areas nearby Rome has played a key role for the conservation and further expansion of core areas; yet, local loss of 1974 core areas stocks in a few protected areas indicates need of further law enforcement to ensure effective protection of the natural capital from degradation processes or even land conversion into built-up areas. Results calls for future in-depth investigations on the quality of newly created or maintained forest resource stocks associated to different spatial pattern structures. Integrated spatial planning strategies are outlined for the conservation of ecosystem capital and ecosystems services provided by forests, as major components of Rome’s green infrastructure. Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.elsevier.com

2012-12-31T23:00:00Z Corona, Piermaria Barbati, Anna Tomao, Antonio Bertani, Remo Valentini, Riccardo Marchetti, Marco Fattorini, Lorenzo Perugini, Lucia http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2346 2013-03-01T00:05:45Z 2011-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Land use inventory as framework for environmental accounting: an application in Italy Authors: Corona, Piermaria; Barbati, Anna; Tomao, Antonio; Bertani, Remo; Valentini, Riccardo; Marchetti, Marco; Fattorini, Lorenzo; Perugini, Lucia Abstract: Land use inventories are sound measures to provide information on the area occupied by different land use or land cover types and their changes, although less widespread than traditional mapping; as such, they are distinctively wellestablished tools for generating statistics on the state and the dynamics of land use in the European Union. Italy has recently set up a land use inventory system (IUTI) as a key instrument for accounting removals and emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) associated to land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF) activities elected by Italy under the Kyoto Protocol. IUTI adopts a statistical sampling procedure to estimate the area covered by LULUCF land use categories in Italy, and associated uncertainty estimates. Estimates of land use have been so far processed for the period 1990-2008 and highlight three interlinked land use change patterns in Italy: (i) increase in forest land for a total uptake of 1.7% of the Italian territory; forest cover estimates, with a standard error of 0.1%, indicate an annual increase of forestland higher over the period 1990-2000 (32 901 ha year-1) than in 2000-2008 (22 857 ha year-1); surprisingly, also a significant deforestation rate is observed (-7000 ha year-1), due to forest land conversion mainly into artificial areas; (ii) consumption of arable land (-4.2% of the Italian territory) primarily due to land uptake by urban areas and to conversions to permanent crops (mainly orchards and vineyards); (iii) urban sprawl uptakes 1.6% of the Italian territory in this period, with a total coverage of settlements reaching 7.1% of total land surface in Italy in 2008. Overall, land use dynamic results in land uptake by forest land is of the same magnitude of land uptake by urban areas, but the effects of these processes on GHG removals (by forest sinks) and emissions (by urban areas) is expected to be significantly different. In a broader perspective, IUTI methodology, by providing reliable estimates and well-defined levels of statistical uncertainty for assessing stocks and flows of land use at national level, can be further implemented to frame other key questions for sustainable development policies, like the set up of environmental-economic accounting systems. Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.sisef.it

2011-12-31T23:00:00Z Moreira, Francisco Viedma, Olga Arianoutsou, Margarita Curt, Thomas Koutsias, Nikos Rigolot, Eric Barbati, Anna Corona, Piermaria Vaz, Pedro Xanthopoulos, Gavriil Mouillot, Florent Bilgili, Ertugrul http://hdl.handle.net/2067/2348 2013-03-01T00:05:48Z 2010-12-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Landscape-wildfire interactions in southern Europe: implications for landscape management Authors: Moreira, Francisco; Viedma, Olga; Arianoutsou, Margarita; Curt, Thomas; Koutsias, Nikos; Rigolot, Eric; Barbati, Anna; Corona, Piermaria; Vaz, Pedro; Xanthopoulos, Gavriil; Mouillot, Florent; Bilgili, Ertugrul Abstract: Every year approximately half a million hectares of land are burned by wildfires in southern Europe, causing large ecological and socio-economic impacts. Climate and land use changes in the last decades have increased fire risk and danger. In this paper we review the available scientific knowledge on the relationships between landscape and wildfires in the Mediterranean region, with a focus on its application for defining landscape management guidelines and policies that could be adopted in order to promote landscapes with lower fire hazard. The main findings are that (1) socio-economic drivers have favoured land cover changes contributing to increasing fire hazard in the last decades, (2) large wildfires are becoming more frequent, (3) increased fire frequency is promoting homogeneous landscapes covered by fire-prone shrublands; (4) landscape planning to reduce fuel loads may be successful only if fire weather conditions are not extreme. The challenges to address these problems and the policy and landscape management responses that should be adopted are discussed, along with major knowledge gaps. Description: L'articolo è disponibile sul sito dell'editore www.elsevier.com

2010-12-31T23:00:00Z