Second law of thermodynamics and urban green infrastructure – A knowledge synthesis to address spatial planning strategies

Planning strategies driven by the second law of thermodynamics (SLT) are innovative approaches to sustainability but they are still in seminal phase. In this article, a coupled review of SLT within spatial planning is accomplished looking at the main applications in urban green infrastructure (UGI) planning. In particular, a systemic review of UGI planning and thermodynamics has been carried out to identify all the occurrences to date in the scientific literature. Secondly, a scoping review of SLT-related concepts of exergy, entropy and urban metabolism is presented in order to investigate the main applications of, and gaps in, urban spatial planning. Results indicate that UGI and ecosystem service planning based on SLT is a relatively new field of research. Moreover, some general indications are derived for the development of spatial UGI planning strategies based on SLT. The work then aims to contribute to the improvement and/or development of even more solid planning strategies supporting a SLTconscious green transition of cities

Detection of Landscape patterns in airborne LIDAR data in the Nature Reserve of Castelporziano (Rome)

During the last decades the protection of nature has become a very important aspect due to the anthropogenic interference and structural alteration of the environment, especially in the peri-urban areas. Therefore, for a sustainable forest planning it is fundamental to get information about the actual state and the variation in landscape patterns concerning the forest layers. To this aim, an airborne laser scanning (LIDAR), a type of sensor which explicitly measures canopy height, was used to detect landscape patterns of broadleaf oak forest and for detecting the monumental trees in a peri-urban Natural Reserve: the Presidential Estate of Castelporziano (Rome)

Detection of Landscape patterns in airborne LIDAR data in the Nature Reserve of Castelporziano (Rome)

During the last decades the protection of nature has become a very important aspect due to the anthropogenic interference and structural alteration of the environment, especially in the peri-urban areas. Therefore, for a sustainable forest planning it is fundamental to get information about the actual state and the variation in landscape patterns concerning the forest layers. To this aim, an airborne laser scanning (LIDAR), a type of sensor which explicitly measures canopy height, was used to detect landscape patterns of broadleaf oak forest and for detecting the monumental trees in a peri-urban Natural Reserve: the Presidential Estate of Castelporziano (Rome)

Utilisation de zones critiques pour améliorer le ratio coût/efficacité de modifications de pratiques visant à limiter les transferts de phosphore et de sédiments à l'échelle de bassins versants

International audienceThe impact of implementing different best management practices (BMPs) at the small watershed scale were examined for the Petzenkirchen catchment in Austria and Lake Vico in Italy, in terms of data needs, hydrological processes, tools and models involved. Identification of critical source areas for targeting soil and phosphorus losses turned out to be crucial for correct allocation of BMPs. Comparison of environmental effectiveness and costs, both calculated using various modelling approaches, enabled us to compare different levels of introducing BMPs ecologically and economically. Within each catchment, small areas of land tended to be the source of disproportionately large amounts of pollution . Therefore, confining mitigation to these areas costs less than targeting wider areas. This suggests that a policy for environmental programmes should be focussed on hydrological units and critical source areas within these units instead of introducing universal controls - the watering can' principle - as practised today

AgriBMPWater project: web site reports and papers final conference (Deliverables n°D11, 12 and 13)

AgriBMPWater is an european research project of the 5th RTD Framework program (Key Action: Sustainable Management and Quality of Water). This report presents the deliverable n°11, 12 and 13 of this research project

AgriBMPWater project: economic databases general equilibrium model (Deliverables n°D32 and 33)

[Departement_IRSTEA]GT [TR1_IRSTEA]RURAMEN / CERES [TR2_IRSTEA]RURAMEN / AMANDEAgriBMPWater is an european research project of the 5th RTD Framework program (Key Action: Sustainable Management and Quality of Water). This report presents the deliverable n°32 and 33 of this research project