Paolo Rosato

Towards the development of a decision support system for water resource management

Developing decision support systems for environmental applications is an intricate, challenging task. The increasing complexity of environmental decision problems, the growing number of subjects involved and keen competition between conflicting interests make decisions and decision support difficult. Decision support systems have been developed since the 1970s to help tackle semi-structured and unstructured decision problems. Despite their popularity, the success of DSS development is uncertain and many computerised decision-support tools have failed when dealing with complex and unstructured problems. This article describes the development methodology and progress of mDSS, a decision support system for water resource management that has been developed under the European research project MULINO. The mDSS tool is designed to integrate environmental (especially hydrological) models with multiple-criteria evaluation procedures. A number of prototypes have been developed and the final version is expected at the end of the 3-year project. The system’s development is driven by the experience acquired in several case studies selected in five European countries. Although the main aim of the MULINO project and the DSS is to help with increasingly complex decisions of general water management, the concepts of sustainable river basin management introduced by the water framework directive are addressed as well. � 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Information and Willingness to Pay in a Contingent Valuation Study: The Value of S. Erasmo in the Lagoon of Venice

This paper reports on a contingent valuation (CV) study eliciting willingness to pay (WTP) for a public program for the preservation of lagoon, beach and infrastructure in the island of S. Erasmo in the Lagoon of Venice, Italy. We use split samples to investigate the effect of providing a summary of reasons for voting in favor and against the program before the referendum valuation question. Reminding respondents of the reasons for voting for or against the program increases WTP among less highly educated respondents, and decreases WTP among more highly educated respondents.

Simulating impacts of agricultural policy on nitrogen losses from a watershed in Northern Italy

Abstract Thematic maps, statistical data, and field and farm sampling have been merged with digital satellite data to implement simulation models for managing the problems related to agricultural non-point source pollution. This has been done putting the different data sources and techniques into the same Geographical Information System (GIS). The integration of GIS with the environmental impact simulator and economic programming model was utilized for estimating the possible changes in environmental impact caused by the recent Reform in the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) of the European Union. An economic programming model was built to evaluate land use changes induced by the CAP Reform under different hypotheses of technology adjustment. The entire data set has then been utilized as a geographical data base to run non-point source (NPS) simulation models to estimate the impact on water quality of the agricultural systems located within the study area. Nutrient (nitrogen) concentrations were the environmental indicators chosen to evaluate the impacts on water quality. In this way the system created by the linkage of GIS and simulation model (Spatial Environmental Impact Simulator, SEIS) has become a decision support system, for evaluating the effectiveness of environmental interventions on a regional scale.

A farm multicriteria analysis model for the economic and environmental evaluation of agricultural land use

The paper presents a model that produces and evaluates alternative farming systems. The economic and environmental viewpoints are considered within different hypotheses of agricultural policy and farmer’s decision-making process. The model is composed of three parts: a) a multiobjective programming model for the simulation at farm level of policies and farmer’s decision-making; b) a model for the environmental impact assessment of the results of the previous simulations; c) a multi-attribute evaluation of the simulations from both the economic and environmental point of view. The model has been applied in the area of the Venice Lagoon Basin (VLB), located in northern Italy. The economic-environmental evaluation demonstrates that there is clear synergy between the tendency of the farmer to minimise the risk of the cropping systems and the necessity to reduce the environmental impact of farming techniques. This is particularly useful for promoting low-impact agricultural practices in the situations dominated by traditional production methods whose environmental implications appear very variable.

Redeveloping Derelict and Underused Historic City Areas:Evidence from a Survey of Real Estate Developers

Infill redevelopment—the transformation of previously used urban sites—is generally regarded as an important way to attain environmental and urban sustainability goals. At many locales, however, such urban renewal, community development, and tax revenue goals must be reconciled with historic preservation objectives. Are economic incentives and regulatory relief useful tools for encouraging reuse of abandoned or underutilized urban sites with historic buildings? Answering this question is of key importance for many European cities and for older US cities, and has important implications in terms of urban sustainability and “smart growth” initiatives. We use conjoint choice experiments to explore the relative importance of economic incentives, regulatory relief, land use and property regime offerings at underutilized historical sites in Venice, Italy. We survey real estate developers and investors, and ask them to choose between pairs of hypothetical projects in three Venice locations, as well as between one of these projects and the alternative to do a development project elsewhere. Statistical models of the responses to these choice questions indicate that respondents are sensitive to the price of acquiring the land (and hence to any policies that influence prices), and especially sensitive to the property regime that would be granted to developers and investors and to the allowable land use. Contrary to expectations, our respondents were insensitive to tightening or relaxing the stringency of building conservation restrictions. Our findings sound a common theme with Howland (2004), who warns that redevelopment of previously used sites in Baltimore is impaired by obsolete land uses, zoning and infrastructure (but not by suspected or actual contamination). We conclude that the City should focus on offering land uses and property regimes that are more in tune with developer demand.

Multi-Criteria Analysis and Decision-Support for Water Management at the Catchment Scale: An Application to Diffuse Pollution Control in the Venice Lagoon

Water pollution in the Venice Lagoon and its catchment is a main environmental issue. In Italy public funds are made available by specific national and regional regulations in order to support the realisation of initiatives for the abatement of pollutant loads that travel from the catchment into the lagoon. Local agencies in charge of water management may apply for funds by presenting suitable projects in the field of hydraulic and environmental engineering particularly modifications to the surface water network aimed at reducing diffuse pollutant loads in the Venice Lagoon. Because the need to support those agencies in choosing among options often arises, together with the need of presenting and supporting choices that are made, in front of the funding administration. The decisional context of the present study was determined by a given amount of public funds made available by the regional administration, to be used in an optimal way by choosing what to do (within a list of possible interventions like flow regulation, plantation of riparian vegetation, etc.) and where (within the surface water network of the district). A multi-stage multi-criteria evaluation approach was developed, which subdivided the decisional problem into two operational phases. In a first step a priority sub-area was chosen within the district with a multi-criteria evaluation procedure which took into account several decisional criteria, formulated by the authority responsible for the decision. Those criteria were quantified by using thematic maps (GIS layers), as spatial indicators for prioritising the location of pollution control initiatives. In a second step the choice among alternative projects within the chosen area was supported by a second round of multi-criteria analysis developed in collaboration with a decisional board. The results of the application of the proposed method to the case study demonstrated the potentials of collaborative multi-criteria analysis in supporting the activity of operational agencies during the whole process of development of proposals, plans for interventions and projects, both internally to share information and build consensus within the various component of the board, and outside, in the relationship with external bodies (funding agencies, local stakeholders, etc.), to present and support the decisions proposed.

A multi-criteria approach to territorial management: The case of the Caorle and Bibione lagoon nature park

Abstract This paper presents the results from a research project aimed at evaluating management schemes for rural land. The case study area is located in the eastern part of Venice province, between the Livenza and Tagliamento rivers, along the Adriatic coast, where an environment conservation project is planned. A multi-criteria approach is adopted and the used methodology allows for organizing analysis in a strictly logical sequence to assess the ‘overall desirability’, in terms of agricultural production and environmental conservation, of different regulatory schemes proposed for managing the protected area.

Valuing Complex Natural Resource Systems

In complex natural resource systems, modifications or disruptions tend to affect many and diverse components of the ecological system, settlements and groups of people. This book uses the Lagoon of Venice – a unique natural resource, wildlife habitat, centre of cultural heritage and recreational site – as an example of one such system that has been heavily affected by human activities, including the harvesting of natural resources and industrial production. The contributors explore the Lagoon’s potential for regeneration, examining public policies currently under consideration. The aim of these policies is to restore island coastlines and marshes, fish stocks, habitat and environmental quality, defend morphology and landscape through the strict control of fishing practices, and to protect the islands from high tides.

Individual Travel Cost Method and Flow Fixed Costs

The paper proposes an approach for evaluating the effect of flow fixed costs on the evaluation of environmental benefits with travel cost method. On a full annual perspective when recreational users incur relevant annual direct fixed expenses, their behaviour could be influenced by them. The approach introduces a) the notion of the minimal number of annual visits that justifies the annual fixed expenses incurred by the user and b) a method to estimate it. The estimate of this minimal number permits to forecast the user behaviour on a full annual perspective, taking into account a more accurate estimate of the number of visits at different additional fees.

Value of travel time for university students: a revealed/stated preference analysis

Although the value of travel time (VTT) is extensively used in transport economics in order to conduct cost–benefit analysis and there have been numerous studies estimating this information for different countries, transport modes and type of users, there are very few estimates for the university students commuting from their hometown to the university-town. This article presents a VTT estimate for the students enrolled at the University of Trieste (Italy) based on sequential approach which: (1) collects revealed preference data in order to estimate a preliminary VTT; (2) generates C-efficient Bayesian designs pivoted around the characteristics of homogenous segments of the population and (3) administers an integrated revealed and stated preference questionnaire to a selected sample. The estimate obtained on the basis of the combined revealed and stated preference data ranges from 2.8 to 1.4€/h is significantly lower than the estimates obtained on the bases of the revealed preference data only, which ranges from 18 to 13€/h, and differs from the VTT for commuting to work reported in the literature by a factor of about 6.