Forme di agricoltura periurbana nella ‘città continua’ padana: il caso del Parco dell’Airone e della Cooperativa farine tipiche del Garda di Bedizzole

Tra le svariate pratiche odierne volte a raggiungere e/o a ristabilire ‘forme dell’urbano’ compatibili con i metabolismi socio-ambientali del territorio, una particolare rilevanza è ricoperta dalle pratiche di agricoltura alternativa. Queste pratiche non riguardano solo i contesti ‘rurali’ del ‘Sud’ del mondo; al contrario se ne possono ritrovare le tracce in numerose esperienze di ‘cura’ del territorio, di costruzione di forme economiche di prossimità, di valorizzazione di specificità locali, di sviluppo di zone agricole periurbane con produzioni di qualità etc. In Italia ciò è particolarmente rilevante per il contesto della pianura Padana, l’area agricola più vasta e produttiva del Paese, dove l’espansione edilizia ha creato una sorta di ‘città continua’ fra Torino e Venezia ed una cementi-ficazione più che doppia rispetto alla media nazionale. Questo contributo tratta di una di queste esperienze, legata alla Cooperativa Farine Tipiche del Lago di Garda e al Parco dell’Airone, entrambi situati nel Comune di Bedizzole (Brescia). A partire dall’analisi di un processo di mobilitazione locale per la difesa dell’ecosistema del fiume Chiese si cerca di evidenziare come da pratiche locali di resistenza a usi insostenibili del territorio (sia in termini fisici che socio-culturali) si possano originare le condizioni per modalità alternative di relazione con esso.Among today’s practices aimed at achieving or restoring forms of urbanization respectful for the socio-environmental metabolism of territories, new forms of sustainable agriculture are very impor-tant. Such practices do not concern only ‘rural’ contexts in the ‘South’ of the world, but are implied in various local experiences of territorial ‘care’, ‘economies of proximity’, enhancement of local peculiarities, development of periurban farming areas with high-quality production etc.. In Italy, this is particularly relevant in the Pianura Padana context, the largest and most productive agricultural area of the country, where the housing boom has created a sort of ‘continuous city’ between Turin and Venice in which the soil consumption is twice the national average. This study aims at examining one of such experiences, concerning the Cooperativa Farine Tipiche del Lago di Garda and the Airone Park, both located in the area of Bedizzole (Brescia). Starting from the analysis of a local campaign in defense of the river Chiese ecosystem, we try to highlight how practices of local resistance to unsustainable conditions of territories (in physical as well as in socio-cultural terms) can lead to the development of alternative forms of relationships with them

Influence of climate change on the frequency of daytime temperature inversions and stagnation events in the Po Valley: historical trend and future projections

This work analyzes the frequency of days characterized by daytime temperature inversion and air stagnation events in the Po valley area. The analysis is focused on both historical series and future projections under climate change. Historical sounding data from two different Italian stations are used as well as future projections data, provided by CMCC-CCLM 4-8-19 regional climate model (MED-CORDEX initiative). A new method to detect layers of temperature inversion is also presented. The developed method computes the occurrence of a temperature inversion layer for a given day at 12 UTC without a detailed knowledge of temperature vertical profile. This method was validated using sounding data and applied to the model projections, under two different emissions scenarios (RCP4.5 and RCP8.5). Under RCP4.5 intermediate emissions scenario, the occurrence of temperature inversions is projected to increase by 12 days/year (around + 10%) in the last decade of 21st century compared to 1986–2005 average. However, the increase in temperature inversions seems to be especially concentrated in the warm period. Under RCP8.5 extreme scenario, temperature inversions are still projected to increase, though to a lesser extent compared to RCP4.5 scenario (+ 6 days/year in the last decade of 21st century). A similar trend was found also for air stagnation events, which take into account the variation of precipitation pattern and wind strength. The expected increases are equal to + 13 days/year and + 11 days/year in the last decade of 21st century compared to 1986–2005 average, under RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios respectively

Particle number and mass exposure concentrations by commuter transport modes in Milan, Italy

There is increasing awareness amongst the general public about exposure to atmospheric pollution while travelling in urban areas especially when taking active travelling modes such as walking and cycling. This study presents a comparative investigation of ultrafine particles (UFP), PM10, PM2.5, PM1 exposure levels associated with four transport modes (i.e., walking, cycling, car, and subway) in the city of Milan measured by means of portable instruments. Significant differences in particle exposure between transport modes were found. The subway mode was characterized by the highest PM mass concentrations: PM10, PM2.5, PM1 subway levels were respectively about 2-4-3 times higher than those of the car and open air active modes (i.e. cycling and walking). Conversely, these latter modes displayed the highest UFP levels about 2 to 3 times higher than the subway and car modes, highlighting the influence of direct traffic emissions. The car mode (closed windows, air conditioning and air recirculation on) reported the lowest PM and UFP concentration levels. In particular, the open-air/car average concentration ratio varied from about 2 for UFP up to 4 for PM1 and 6 for PM10 and PM2.5, showing differences that increase with increasing particle size. This work points out that active mode travelling in Milan city centre in summertime results in higher exposure levels than the car mode. Walkers’ and cyclists’ exposure levels is expected to be even higher during wintertime, due to the higher ambient PM and UFP concentration. Interventions intended to re-design the urban mobility should therefore include dedicated routes in order to limit their exposure to PM and UFP by increasing their distance from road traffic

Spatial and temporal variability of carbonaceous aerosol absorption in the Po Valley

Knowledge gaps in the optical properties of carbonaceous aerosols account for a significant fraction of the uncertainty of aerosol-light interactions in climate models. Both black carbon (BC) and brown carbon (BrC) can display a range of optical properties in ambient aerosol due to different sources and chemical transformation pathways. This study investigates the optical absorption properties of BC and BrC at an urban and a rural site in the Po Valley (Italy), a known European pollution hot spot. We observed spatial and seasonal variability of aerosol absorption coefficients, with the highest values measured in winter at the urban site of Milan (12 Mm–1 on average) and the lowest values in summer at the rural site of Motta Visconti (3 Mm–1 on average). The average aerosol Absorption Å ngström Exponent (AAE) measured during the two experiments across the 370–880 nm wavelength range was 1.1 and 1.2 at the urban and the rural site, respectively. The observed AAE values in winter (the average AAE during the two winter campaigns was 1.2) are consistent with the contribution of wood burning BrC, as confirmed by macro-tracer analysis. The BC mass absorption cross section (MACBC) did not show a specific seasonal or spatial variability across the two sites and maintained an average value of 10 ± 5 m2 g–1 at 880 nm. The optical properties of BrC, investigated off-line after extraction of organic aerosol (OA) indicate that wood burning was the dominant BrC source in winter, while secondary organic aerosol (SOA) from other anthropogenic emissions was the main source of BrC in summer

Intracranial Subdural Hematoma after Spinal Anesthesia for Cesarean Section

Intracranial subdural hematoma following spinal anesthesia is an infrequent occurrence in the obstetric population. Nevertheless, it is a potentially life-threatening complication. In the majority of the cases, the first clinical symptom associated with intracranial subdural bleeding is severe headache, but the clinical course may have different presentations. In this report, we describe the case of a 38-year-old woman with an acute intracranial subdural hematoma shortly after spinal anesthesia for cesarean section. Early recognition of symptoms of neurologic impairment led to an emergency craniotomy for hematoma evacuation with good recovery of neurologic functions. The possibility of subdural hematoma should be considered in any patient complaining of severe persistent headache following regional anesthesia, unrelieved by conservative measures. Only early diagnosis and an appropriate treatment may avoid death or irreversible neurologic damage