Urban Forestry and Biodiversity in Green Plans, Regulations and Programs: A Screening in Central Italy and Islands

Human activities are straining the planet’s biodiversity and severely altering 75% of Earth’s ecosystems and threatening the extinction of millions of animal and plant species. Over the past 40 years, the planet’s wildlife has decreased by 60% and one-fifth of the earth’s land area (more than 2 billion hectares) is suffering from progressive degradation. Changes of this kind are leading to the decline of natural ecosystems at an unprecedented rate in human history with serious impacts on the world’s population. Urban ecosystems are fragile and complex living environments and are often much more articulated and diversified than we think. They need to be more thoroughly understood in order to drive choices for the preservation, restoration and creation of urban landscapes to sustain a new fellowship based on awareness and eco-responsibility for an harmonious coexistence among all species. In Italy, without any policy instruments that integrate biodiversity, local governments are adopting plans and implementing programs to preserve and increase green areas in urban contexts through the use of nature-based solutions, green and blue infrastructure, and urban forests. Vegetation in the city mitigates environmental and surface temperatures caused by urban heat islands, removes carbon, provides oxygen, reduces air pollution, ensures habitat for animals, decrease soil erosion and enhance the well-being of citizens. The paper presents the results of a screening carried out on plans, regulations and programs on the issues of forestry, greening and biodiversity in urban contexts in three central Italian regions (Tuscany, Umbria and Marche) and in the islands (Sicily and Sardinia). The survey starts from the analysis of existing scientific literature and policies and moves on to the relationship between city planning and nature in urban contexts. The research maps the main governance adopted at the local level and identifies strengths and weaknesses ten years after the enactment of Law No. 10 of 2013 ‘Regulations for the Development of Urban Green Spaces’. The analysis and comparison of plans, regulations and programs of urban forestry, greening and biodiversity are carried out according to specific qualitative-quantitative criteria. The adopted methodology allows to identify the type of the policy instruments investigated, the existing relation with urban planning regulations and technical rules, the programmatic structure—in terms of time of implementation (short-medium-long) and priority of interventions—and to verify the presence of natural ecosystems and urban ecological networks for the reduction of the fragmentation of natural areas. The research is carried out as part of the activities of the National Biodiversity Future Center (NBFC) funded by the PNRR. The main outputs consist of develop an up-to-date overview of the main strategic, management, regulatory and planning tools for urban forestry, greening and biodiversity, adopted by municipal governments for the five regions analyzed; description of the adopted models; identification of the context-based natural solutions employed for restoring natural resources, creating resilient ecosystems and promoting multi-benefits in urban contexts. The paper is intended as a position paper on biodiversity issues in urban contexts in regard to the most recent policies and programs oriented towards its improvement. Furthermore, it aims to provide an update of the 2021 ISTAT survey on the state of the approval of the so-called ‘green planning and governance tools in the provincial and/or metropolitan cities’ and, finally, to suggest reflections on the possibilities of consolidation and development of such guidance, management and project tools.