Search results for "Landscape"

Farmland abandonment in Europe: Identification of drivers and indicators, and development of a composite indicator of risk

2015

Accounting for more than half of the European Union's (EU) territory, agriculture ensures food production, manages important natural resources and supports socio-economic development of rural areas. Moreover, it is estimated that 50% of all plant and animal species (including some of that are listed in the EU Habitat Directive) depend on agricultural practices. The continuation of appropriate agricultural land management is essential to ensure these primary functions. Avoidance of farmland abandonment is therefore an important rationale for the EU's Common Agricultural Policy which requires improved knowledge of this phenomenon at the European level. This study assesses the risk of farmland…

Eco-efficiency assessment of olive farms in Andalusia

2012

Abstract Olive farming represents an important source of income and employment in the rural areas of Andalusia (Spain), which is the most important olive oil-producing region in the world. Unfortunately, it also exerts significant environmental pressures with regard to soil erosion, use of polluting inputs, excessive water consumption and biodiversity reduction. This paper uses Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) techniques and pressure distance functions to contribute a farm-level assessment of the eco-efficiency of a sample of 292 Andalusian olive farmers. We distinguish between managerial eco-efficiency and program eco-efficiency, the latter being associated to the different natural conditio…

Sustainable integration of Renewable Energy Systems in a Mediterranean island: a case study

2013

Starting from a previous technical and economical feasi-bility study, this paper analyzes the integration of Renewable Energy Sources into an existing territory with specified features of the natu-ral landscape and of the built environment. The work puts into evi-dence that territories development must use suitable tools and rules based on integrated knowledge, since technical feasibility studies do not assess the sustainability of the proposed infrastructures within the built environment and landscape. The studied system is in the is-land of Pantelleria situated between Sicily and northern Africa.

Forest ecosystem inventory and monitoring as a framework for terrestrial natural renewable resources survey programmes

2002

The established practice of forest ecosystem inventory and monitoring is recognised as a main support for terrestrial natural renewable resource survey programmes. Inventory and monitoring programmes focused on an overall assessment of ecosystem attributes evolving into global environmental survey programmes have been devised, but implementation is still quite contradictory. The state-of-the-art is discussed here, with special reference to the European Union and Italy. Topical issues are reviewed, with selective concern to: remote sensing capability, probability sampling, forest type (habitat) classification and landscape ecology, sustainable management indicators. Benefits brought by infor…

Connectedness and connectivity of the Natura 2000 network of protected areas across country borders in the European Union

2012

Abstract We studied the spatial connectedness of Natura 2000 site boundaries and the functional connectivity of the Natura 2000 network across the 34 terrestrial borders of the European Union. Connectivity was measured by the dispersal success of 192 reptile, amphibian, invertebrate and plant species from Annex II of the European Union Habitats Directive, based on the presence of same species on both sides of the borders. Connectedness and connectivity varied greatly between state borders, with good and bad examples found in all parts of the European Union. Connectedness and connectivity were positively correlated. However, a few outlying examples showed that good connectedness is not neces…

Past Objectives and Future Scenarios

2016

The intimate link between landscape and urban planning has long been denied and underestimated. In spite of the “good intentions” of certain scholars, practitioners and policy makers across Italy, Spain and other EU countries, their efforts are undermined by rigidly framed, sector-focused laws and by a concept of landscape defined in purely aesthetic terms. We have established the importance of identifying tools used to integrate the various approaches that “urbanism” and landscape planning adopt in dealing with urban planning to date. In fact, even with the prospect of significant environmental legislation, the discipline is still unable to incorporate the concept of landscape and its asso…

Ergonyms of Educational and Cultural spheres in two of Baltic States cities

2020

Daugavpils (Latvia) and Narva (Estonia) are cities in the Baltic States and signifi cant cultural and economic centres of their respective countries. These cities are characterized by a minority of nationals (19.8% of residents of Daugavpils are Latvian, 4% of residents of Narva are Estonian) and a similar linguistic situation: there is a dominance of Russian in the press, television and radio, but the state language prevails in the urban language signs.The aim of the study is to analyse the linguistic and extralinguistic means used for the creation of ergonyms of educational and cultural spheres. The main criteria for the analysis are: language choice, grammatical structures, sources of pr…

Rīgas reklāmas lingvistiskā ainava

2019

Ir grūti iedomāties ikdienas dzīvi bez kāda no reklāmas veidu sastapšanas; tās izpausmes var tikt analizētas, izmantojot gan reklāmas diskursa, gan lingvistiskās ainavas teoriju. Šī pētījuma mērķis bija petīt reklāmas Rīgā, salīdzinot tās starp tām, kuras ir sastopamas Rīgas Centrā un Vecpilsētā. Trīs valodas – latviešu, krievu un angļu – tika salīdzinātas, lai secinātu, kura no valodām tiek izmantota pārsvarā, un ko šie rezultāti varētu nozīmēt, kā arī, kuras grupas ir uzņēmumu mērķauditorija. Reklāmas tika pakļautas analīzei, kas saistīta ar reklāmas diskursa pazīmēm. Pētījuma mērķim tikai izmantota gadījuma analīzes metode, analizējot reklāmas diskursu, lingvistisko ainavu, likus un note…

Perinnemaiseman hoito keino suojella luontoa

2018

The Role of Wastewater in Controlling Fluvial Erosion Processes on Clayey Bedrock

2023

In recent decades, fluvial erosion processes in highly anthropized areas are mainly associated with in-stream gravel mining activities or with the presence of artificial reservoirs which have increased the erosive capacity of the river as a consequence of the reduced sediment transport or the modification of the longitudinal profile of the channel. On the other hand, the role of pollutants in the degradation processes of soils with a predominantly clayey component is little known. The present study, through chemical analyses of water and mineralogical–geotechnical analyses of clayey soil samples taken along some river channels in central Italy in correspondence with water treatment pl…