Parco Agricolo Sud Milano – tree resources, connectivity and management
2021–2023 · Parco Agricolo Sud Milano · Connectivity analysis showed that between 2012 and 2018 tree-covered area declined by 5.6%, ecological corridors by 19% and overall connectivity by 21%, while fragmentation increased by 6%. Currently only 9.8% of habitat is interconnected; a maximum reconnection scenario involving about 470 ha of new green corridors could increase this value to 66.7%.
The study combined field surveys, Copernicus and DUSAF data, AirTree growth modelling, analysis of forest harvesting, ecological connectivity, climate scenarios, invasive species, riparian vegetation, Natura 2000 sites, air pollution and forest-health issues. Tree-covered surfaces total 3,591 ha, including 2,047 ha of tree rows and 1,544 ha of woodland. Twenty-six tree species were recorded in the field sample, with black locust as the most abundant. Recorded harvesting was well below annual wood-volume increments, indicating that the main management issue is not total harvest intensity but its spatial distribution and its potential effect on green-infrastructure continuity.
The guidelines translate these findings into operational recommendations for compensatory planting, management of tree rows and small woodlots, retention of mature trees and tree-related microhabitats, restoration of ecological corridors, control of invasive species, and selection of species and provenances better suited to future climate conditions.
Related research lines: Sustainable forest management and planning · Biodiversity, conservation and old-growth forests
Reports and outputs: Guidelines for the management of tree resources in Parco Agricolo Sud Milano