Leveraging Soil Geography for Land Use Planning: Assessing and Mapping Soil Ecosystem Services Indicators in Emilia-Romagna, NE Italy

Fabrizio Ungaro (), Paola Tarocco and Costanza Calzolari
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Fabrizio Ungaro: Institute of BioEconomy CNR IBE, Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
Paola Tarocco: Geology, Soil and Seismic Risk Area, Regione Emilia-Romagna, Viale A. Moro 52, 40127 Bologna, Italy
Costanza Calzolari: Institute of BioEconomy CNR IBE, Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy

Geographies, 2025, vol. 5, issue 3, 1-32

Abstract: An indicator-based approach was implemented to assess the contributions of soils in supplying ecosystem services, providing a scalable tool for modeling the spatial heterogeneity of soil functions at regional and local scales. The method consisted of (i) the definition of soil-based ecosystem services (SESs), using available point data and thematic maps; (ii) the definition of appropriate SES indicators; (iii) the assessment and mapping of potential SESs provision for the Emilia-Romagna region (22.510 km 2 ) in NE Italy. Depending on data availability and on the role played by terrain features and soil geography and its complexity, maps of basic soil characteristics (textural fractions, organic C content, and pH) covering the entire regional territory were produced at a 1 ha resolution using digital soil mapping techniques and geostatistical simulations to explicitly consider spatial variability. Soil physical properties such as bulk density, porosity, and hydraulic conductivity at saturation were derived using pedotransfer functions calibrated using local data and integrated with supplementary information such as land capability and remote sensing indices to derive the inputs for SES assessment. Eight SESs were mapped at 1:50,000 reference scale: buffering capacity, carbon sequestration, erosion control, food provision, biomass provision, water regulation, water storage, and habitat for soil biodiversity. The results are discussed and compared for the different pedolandscapes, identifying clear spatial patterns of soil functions and potential SES supply.

Keywords: soil geography; soil ecosystem services; digital soil mapping; geostatistical simulations; pedotransfer functions; Emilia-Romagna (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q15 Q5 Q53 Q54 Q56 Q57 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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