Towards Land Consumption Neutrality and Natural Capital Enhancement at Urban Landscape Scale

Donatella Valente, Erica Maria Lovello, Cosimo Gaspare Giannuzzi, Angela Maria Scardia Scardia, Maria Victoria Marinelli and Irene Petrosillo ()
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Donatella Valente: Laboratory of Landscape Ecology, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Erica Maria Lovello: Laboratory of Landscape Ecology, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Cosimo Gaspare Giannuzzi: Regional Agency for the Protection of the Environment of the Apulia Region, Scientific Direction U.O.C. Natural Environment Service Regional Sea Center, 70126 Bari, Italy
Angela Maria Scardia Scardia: Laboratory of Landscape Ecology, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Maria Victoria Marinelli: Laboratory of Landscape Ecology, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Irene Petrosillo: Laboratory of Landscape Ecology, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy

Land, 2023, vol. 12, issue 4, 1-15

Abstract: Among the UNCCD SDGs 2030, there is the recognition that land consumption can strongly affect the provision of ecosystem services. From the perspective of land degradation neutrality, urban level is the right scale when planning actions against land consumption. The aims of this research are: (1) to assess land consumption at urban landscape scale and its effects on natural capital flow provision; and (2) to identify sustainable strategic planning choices for land consumption mitigation and natural capital enhancement. We propose and test an approach based on multi-temporal landscape spatial analysis (land use/land cover map, land consumption map, and landscape metrics) and ecosystem services’ flow assessment for the identification of areas at risk of loss of natural capital flow. The results have shown that from 2006 to 2019, land consumption has increased with a consequent decrease of natural capital flow. LULC dynamics has been analyzed in terms of landscape risk to lose natural capital flow, highlighting that the management of Galatone urban landscape is still far from land consumption neutrality. Landscape metrics have allowed the analysis of the aggregation among land consumption areas. The mitigation of land consumption should be based on the identification of suitable nature-based solutions towards the balance between past land consumption and future land recovery.

Keywords: ecosystem services; strategic environmental assessment; nature-based solutions; sustainable goals; adaptive planning (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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