Tomaso Ceccarelli

Linking trajectories of land change, land degradation processes and ecosystem services

Land Degradation (LD) is a complex phenomenon resulting in a progressive reduction in the capacity of providing ecosystem services (ES). Landscape transformations promoting an unsustainable use of land often reveal latent processes of LD. An evaluation carried out in respect to the different ecosystem services is nowadays regarded as the most appropriate approach for assessing the effects of LD. The aim of this study is to develop an evaluation framework for identifying the linkages between land changes, LD processes and ES and suggesting Sustainable Land Management (SLM) options suited to reverse (or mitigate) LD impact. A SWOT analysis was carried out with the aim to identify internal and external factors that are favorable (or unfavorable) to achieve the proposed SLM actions. The study areas are the Fortore valley and the Valpadana, in Italy. The main trajectory identified for the Fortore valley is related to land abandonment due to population aging and the progressive emigration started in the 1950s. The most relevant LD processes are soil erosion and geomorphological instability, affecting regulating services such as natural hazard and erosion control. SLM options should consider interventions to contrast geomorphological instability, the promotion of climate smart agriculture and of typical products, and an efficient water resources management. The main trajectories identified for Valpadana are related to urban expansion and farmland abandonment and, as a consequence, land take due to anthropogenic pressure and woodland expansion as the main LD process. The reduction of food production was identified as the most relevant provisioning service affected. SLM should envisage best practices finalized to water saving and soil consumption reduction: efficient irrigation solutions, climate smart agriculture and zero sealing practices. This study highlights the diagnostic value of the suggested approach where LD processes are elicited from land change trajectories determining specific impacts on ES and providing operational support for the implementation of SLM options.

Unraveling Landscape Complexity: Land Use/Land Cover Changes and Landscape Pattern Dynamics (1954–2008) in Contrasting Peri-Urban and Agro-Forest Regions of Northern Italy

This study implements an exploratory data analysis of landscape metrics and a change detection analysis of land use and population density to assess landscape dynamics (1954–2008) in two physiographic zones (plain and hilly-mountain area) of Emilia Romagna, northern Italy. The two areas are characterized by different landscape types: a mixed urban–rural landscape dominated by arable land and peri-urban settlements in the plain and a traditional agro-forest landscape in the hilly-mountain area with deciduous and conifer forests, scrublands, meadows, and crop mosaic. Urbanization and, to a lesser extent, agricultural intensification were identified as the processes underlying landscape change in the plain. Land abandonment determining natural forestation and re-forestation driven by man was identified as the process of change most representative of the hilly-mountain area. Trends in landscape metrics indicate a shift toward more fragmented and convoluted patterns in both areas. Number of patches, the interspersion and juxtaposition index, and the large patch index are the metrics discriminating the two areas in terms of landscape patterns in 1954. In 2008, mean patch size, edge density, interspersion and juxtaposition index, and mean Euclidean nearest neighbor distance were the metrics with the most different spatial patterns in the two areas. The exploratory data analysis of landscape metrics contributed to link changes over time in both landscape composition and configuration providing a comprehensive picture of landscape transformations in a wealthy European region. Evidence from this study are hoped to inform sustainable land management designed for homogeneous landscape units in similar socioeconomic contexts.

Map of Long-Term Changes in Land Sensitivity to Degradation of Italy

The study introduces a map of the long-term changes in the level of land sensitivity to degradation for Italy, presented at a scale of 1:1,300,000. According to the Environmental Sensitive Area (ESA) approach, the national territory was divided into different classes of land sensitivity by assigning a score based on the observed changes in four themes (climate, soil, vegetation and land management) related to land degradation processes. The observed increase in the level of land sensitivity was rapid and spatially heterogeneous and reflects the decrease in land quality mainly due to human-derived landscape transformations. Maps illustrating the change in land sensitivity over a sufficiently long time period should be developed at country scale as a contribution to monitoring and dissemination of scientific results in the framework of the ‘Zero Net’ Land Degradation strategy introduced by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification.

Investigating syndromes of agricultural land degradation through past trajectories and future scenarios

Abstract In the last decades, due to climate changes, soil deterioration and land use/land cover (LULC) changes, land degradation (LD) has become one of the most important issues at the global, regional and local scale. In concrete terms, LD determines a reduction in the productivity of a territory and in its capacity of providing ecosystem goods and services. “Syndromes” of LD can be assessed in the past, and scenarios, conversely, can be developed for the future, as information baselines for sustainable land management strategies and interventions. LULC information is essential for identifying change trajectories and associated LD processes, and for deriving prediction rules. Methodological issues and results of studies led within the framework of the research project AGROSCENARI (Adaptation scenarios of Italian agriculture to climate change) are discussed in this paper, analysing the case of the Emilia-Romagna region in Italy. Two key trajectories are investigated in detail: artificialization on the one hand, and scrubland and forestland expansion on the other. The first trajectory is associated with LD especially in terms of physical loss of farming land and soil sealing. The second trajectory is related to abandonment of agricultural land, and linked to LD processes such as soil erosion and hydrological instability, and to wildfires. The identification of such spatially explicit LD syndromes, which can also be projected on the basis of future scenarios, allows proposing and evaluating focussed measures of sustainable land management.

Amplifying (or Reversing) the Territorial Disparities in Land Vulnerability to Soil Degradation: The Case of Italy

This article analyzes the territorial disparities in the level of land vulnerability (TDLV) to soil degradation caused by five processes (soil erosion, salinization, sealing, contamination, and compaction) as well as by climate variations in Italy in 1990 and 2000. The analysis reveals, for each soil degradation process, a typical spatial distribution across Italy. Three processes (soil salinization, compaction, and sealing) contribute significantly to the increase in land vulnerability, which is mainly concentrated in risky areas. The observed disparities highlight a growing environmental divide between northern Italy (an economically developed region, not at risk of desertification) and southern Italy and the two main islands (dry, disadvantaged regions at risk of desertification). The knowledge of such a territorial divide and of the underlying soil degradation processes is regarded as important for environmental policies at the country and regional scales aimed at sustaining the economic and socioenvironmental cohesion between areas that are either vulnerable or nonvulnerable to soil degradation. The proposed approach should be seen as part of a decision-making tool informing policies and supporting the design of management solutions, hopefully reversing disparities in land vulnerability to soil degradation.

Planning for sustainable agro-forest systems: protected areas and soil degradation hotspots in Italy (1990–2010)

Abstract Investigating spatio-temporal trends in soil vulnerability to degradation based on the diachronic analysis of selected biophysical and socioeconomic drivers is a key issue for the identification of prone areas. The working hypothesis of the present study is that a given territorial system may undergo different (and sometimes contrasting) patterns of soil vulnerability (improvement, worsening or stability) in the long term, thus creating (or amplifying) spatial heterogeneity in land resource distribution. Areas classified as “critical” are regarded as soil vulnerability hotspots that require dedicated mitigation policies. The correct identification of “critical” areas to soil degradation is particularly important for the natural areas and, more generally, for the agro-forest systems preserved under various land protection regimes. Based on these premises, the objectives of this study are (i) to assess the spatial distribution of soil vulnerability in Italy over a long enough time interval (1990–2010), (ii) to provide an operational tool to identify soil degradation hotspots according to the observed vulnerability trend and, finally, (iii) to analyze hotspot spatial distribution in relation with natural protected areas and the Natura2000 network. The results of this study provide a useful tool for environmental monitoring and are discussed in the light of sustainable agro-forest management and preservation of natural areas.

A cost-effective approach for improving the quality of soil sealing change detection from Landsat imagery

Abstract The aim of this study is to develop a cost-effective approach for soil sealing change detection integrating radiometric analysis, multi-resolution segmentation and object-based classifiers in two study areas in Italy: Campania region and Veneto region. The integrated approach uses multi-temporal satellite images and CORINE Land Cover (CLC) maps. A good overall accuracy was obtained for the soil sealing maps produced. The results show an improvement in terms of size of the minimum mapping unit and of the changed object (1,44 ha in both cases) in respect to the CLC. The approach proves to be cost-effective given the data which are provided at low or no cost and as well as the level of automation achievable.

Land-Use Trajectories and ‘Syndromes’ of Land Degradation in Northern Italy

The expression Land Degradation (LD) refers to a reduction in the productivity of land and in the provision of ecosystem services. By linking trajectories of Land Use and Land Cover (lulc) and LD processes, the paper evaluates degradation ‘syndromes’ in the past, and develops future scenarios for sustainable land management. Emilia Romagna is a region characterized by major economic transformations reflected in its landscape. By analysing lulc over 54 years, two trajectories were identified and linked to LD ‘syndromes’: (i) urban expansion and (ii) abandonment of farmland. The result is a loss of farmland which has impacted negatively on the primary sector.

Land cover data from Landsat single-date archive imagery: an integrated classification approach

The analysis of land cover dynamics provides insight into many environmental problems. However, there are few data sources which can be used to derive consistent time series, remote sensing being one of the most valuable ones. Due to their multi-temporal and spatial coverage needs, such analysis is usually based on large land cover datasets, which requires automated, objective and repeatable procedures. The USGS Landsat archives provide free access to multispectral, high-resolution remotely sensed data starting from the mid-eighties; in many cases, however, only single date images are available. This paper suggests an objective approach for generating land cover information from 30m resolution and single date Landsat archive satellite imagery. A procedure was developed integrating pixel-based and object-oriented classifiers, which consists of the following basic steps: i) pre-processing of the satellite image, including radiance and reflectance calibration, texture analysis and derivation of vegetation indices, ii) segmentation of the pre-processed image, iii) its classification integrating both radiometric and textural properties. The integrated procedure was tested for an area in Sardinia Region, Italy, and compared with a purely pixel-based one. Results demonstrated that a better overall accuracy, evaluated against the available land cover cartography, was obtained with the integrated (86%) compared to the pixel-based classification (68%) at the first CORINE Land Cover level. The proposed methodology needs to be further tested for evaluating its trasferability in time (constructing comparable land cover time series) and space (for covering larger areas).