Francesco Di Napoli

Ordered weight averaging multicriteria procedure and cost-effectiveness analysis for short rotation forestry in the Basilicata region, Italy

Optimisation of bio-energy chains and the establishment of a bioenergy district can make a positive contribution to territorial development, while reducing environmental pollution. The Ordered Weighted Averaging (OWA) multi-criteria analysis was applied to Basilicata Region in southern Italy to identify suitable areas for Short Rotation Forestry: 4659 ha, 8847 ha and 4742 ha could be planted with eucalyptus, poplar and black locust, respectively. Based on the results, financial analysis compared different management and production scenarios and explored the possibility of accessing national incentives. Economic results are positive above certain yield thresholds (> 15 t.d.m/ha) that can be ensured only with irrigation in summer: the NPV/ha ranged from €111 for black locust to €1360 for poplar. Further economic benefits could be generated by the access to the white certificate market and to the voluntary carbon credit market. Lastly, the results obtained have been confirmed by a sensitivity analysis.

The Effects of Climate Change on the Multifunctional Role of Basilicata’s Forests: The Effects Induced on Yield and CO2 Absorption

The first studies on the possible impact of climate change on European forests and the development of adaptation and mitigation strategies began in the 1990s and resulted in the identification of risk assessment models and forest management tools. The prediction of climate change impacts on forests has been based using the evidence theory or Dempster-Shafer (DS)’s theory, appropriately spatialised. The implemented evidence lines refer to the concepts of vulnerability and resilience. The results of the DS model, applied to the Basilicata region, were utilised to assess the loss in biomass production capacity and CO2 absorption ability of different forest-derived biomasses. The loss in stumpage value and in the estimated CO2 absorption shows a reduction over time of forest system’s economic value that is basically higher in 2050 than in 2100. The applied methodological approach has shown that the high degree of spatial and information detail may be helpful to produce good predictions to envisage environmental policy strategies for the monitoring and mitigation of the damages caused by the climate change, with a view to ensuring the ecosystems’ capacity to produce positive externalities, including air carbon sequestration capacity.

Land Use Sector Involvement in Mitigation Policies Across Carbon Markets

Different local and international experiences show that the agroforestry sector can be fully included in the global warming mitigation strategies and in the market mechanisms that may have environmental and socioeconomic benefits. At present, however, the primary sector plays only a minor role in mitigation policies within the UNFCCC and under Kyoto’s Protocol, due to problems and difficulties related to emission/absorption accounting models and monitoring and standardisation systems. If, on one hand, the progress in science has enabled to overcome accounting-related problems, on the other, there are no adequate mechanisms to encourage and remunerate the primary sector’s efforts. More specifically, if the primary sector is considered as a source of emissions, it should also be recognised that it has beneficial impacts, notably in economic terms, as carbon sink. Therefore, the definition of clear and internationally shared rules might increase the carbon friendly initiatives and help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This article is focused on the international experiences that have concerned the primary sector and is intended to supply researchers and policymakers with suggestions and recommendations for implementing local market practices related to carbon credits.