Identifying regional green infrastructure hotspots. A comparison between the Basilicata and Campania regions, Italy

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.6093/1970-9870/11997

Keywords:

Carbon sequestration and storage, Habitat quality, Land surface temperature, Ecosystem Services, Hotspot analysis

Abstract

Assessing ecosystem services (ESs), the goods and benefits provided by ecosystems and necessary to maintain human life and well-being, is important in spatial planning. Indeed, land-use changes allowed, or even driven, by spatial plans can alter ecosystem structure and functions, thereby influencing ES supply, and, ultimately, the quality of the environment and of human life. Within this framework, this study proposes a methodological approach for the identification of ES hotspots, defined as key areas that supply high levels of ESs, to support more sustainable spatial planning. The initial phase comprises a biophysical evaluation of three key regulating ESs: habitat quality, representing the capacity of ecosystems to sustain wildlife; carbon storage and sequestration, reflecting their contribution to climate regulation; and land surface temperature, serving as an indicator of local thermal mitigation offered by ecosystems. In the second phase, multiple spatial statistical methods for hotspot detection are employed in an integrated framework. Applied to Campania and Basilicata in southern Italy, the proposed approach makes it possible to compare extent and distribution of ES hotspots in the two regions. Easily transferable to other contexts where biophysical ES assessments are available, this approach provides planners with useful information to support effective planning choices.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biographies

Federica Isola, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari, Italy

She is a building engineer, and a Doctor of Research in Engineering and Natural Sciences (Italy, 2012). She is a research fellow at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture of the University of Cagliari.

Sabrina Lai, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari

She is a civil engineer, a Doctor of Research in Land Engineering (Italy, 2009), and an MSc in International Planning and Development (UK, 2008). She is an Associate Professor of Urban and Regional Planning at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture of the University of Cagliari.

Francesca Leccis, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari

She is a Doctor of Research in Civil Engineering and Architecture (Italy, 2017), an MSc in International Real Estate and Planning (UK, 2015), and MSc in Architecture (Italy, 2012). She is a research fellow at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture of the University of Cagliari.

Federica Leone, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari, Italy

She is a building engineer, a Doctor of Research in Land Engineering (Italy, 2013), and an MSc in International Planning and Development (UK, 2012). She is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture of the University of Cagliari.

References

Aneseyee, A.B., Noszczyk, T., Soromessa, T. & Elias, E. (2020). The InVEST habitat quality model associated with land use/cover changes: A qualitative case study of the Winike Watershed in the Omo-Gibe Basin, southwest Ethiopia. Remote Sensing, 12 (7), 1103. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs12071103

Anselin, L. (1995). Local Indicators of Spatial Association—LISA. Geogr. Anal., 27 (2), 93-115. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1538-4632.1995.tb00338.x

Anselin, L. (2024). An Introduction to Spatial Data Science with GeoDa. Volume 1: Exploring Spatial Data. Boca Raton, FL, US: CRC/Chapman&Hall. https://lanselin.github.io/introbook_vol1/ (last accessed 2024/04/07)

Bagstad, K.J., Semmens, D.J., Ancona, Z.H. & Sherrouse, B.C. (2017). Evaluating alternative methods for biophysical and cultural ecosystem services hotspot mapping in natural resource planning. Landsc. Ecol., 32 (1), 77-97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-016-0430-6

Balasubramanian, M. (2019). Economic value of regulating ecosystem services: A comprehensive at the global level review. Environ. Monit. Assess., 191, 616. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-019-7758-8

Bennett, E.M., Peterson, G.D. & Gordon, L.J. (2009). Understanding relationships among multiple ecosystem services. Ecol. Lett., 12, 1394-1404. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1461-0248.2009.01387.x

Blumstein, M. & Thompson, J.R. (2015). Land-use impacts on the quantity and configuration of ecosystem service provisioning in Massachusetts, USA. J. Appl. Ecol., 52, 1009-1019. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.12444

Burkhard, B., Kandziora, M., Hou, Y. & Müller, F. (2014). Ecosystem service potentials, flows and demands - Concepts for spatial localisation, indication and quantification. Landsc. Online, 34, 1-32. https://doi.org/10.3097/LO.201434

Chiang, L.-C., Lin, Y.-P., Huang, T., Schmeller, D.S., Verburg, P.H., Liu, Y.-L. & Ding, T.-S. (2014). Simulation of ecosystem service responses to multiple disturbances from an earthquake and several typhoons. Landscape Urban Plann., 122, 41-55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2013.10.007

Cialdea, D. (2021). Evaluation vs landscape planning in the Italian framework: Is the risk prevention a utopia?. TeMA - Journal of Land Use, Mobility and Environment, 25–38. https://doi.org/10.6093/1970-9870/7423

Comune di Trento (2024). Piano del verde urbano [Urban greenery plan]. Retrieved from: https://www.comune.trento.it/content/download/5885/125950/file/D.02_Piano_del_Verde_urbano_di_Trento-L.pdf (last accessed: 2025/05/26).

Crouzat, E., Mouchet, M., Turkelboom, F., Byczek, C., Meersmans, J., Berger, F., Verkerk, P.J. & Lavorel, S. (2015). Assessing bundles of ecosystem services from regional to landscape scale: Insights from the French Alps. J. Appl. Ecol., 52 (5), 1145–1155. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.12502

DeFries, R.S., Foley, J.A. & Asner, G.P. (2004). Land-use choices: Balancing human needs and ecosystem function. Front. Ecol. Environ., 2 (5), 249–257. https://doi.org/10.1890/1540-9295(2004)002[0249:LCBHNA]2.0.CO;2

Felipe-Lucia, M.R., Soliveres, S., Penone, C., Manning, P., van der Plas, F., Boch, S., Prati, D., Ammer, C., Schall, P., Gossner, M.M., Bauhus, J., Buscot, F., Blaser, S., Blüthgen, N., de Frutos, A., Ehbrecht, M., Frank, K., Goldmann, K., Hänsel, F. & Allan, E. (2018). Multiple forest attributes underpin the supply of multiple ecosystem services. Nat. Commun., 9 (1), 4839. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-07082-4

Foley, J. A., DeFries, R., Asner, G.P., Barford, C., Bonan, G., Carpenter, S.R., Chapin, F.S., Coe, M. T., Daily, G.C., Gibbs, H.K., Helkowski, J.H., Holloway, T., Howard, E.A., Kucharik, C.J., Monfreda, C., Patz, J.A., Prentice, I.C., Ramankutty, N. & Snyder, P.K. (2005). Global Consequences of Land Use. Science, 309 (5734), 570–574. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1111772

Fratini, F. (2023). The Eco-Pedagogical Microforest a shared oasis of proximity. A cutting-edge project at the intersection of ecology, urbanism and pedagogy. TeMA - Journal of Land Use, Mobility and Environment, SI 2, 33-54. https://doi.org/10.6093/1970-9870/10055

Gao, Y., Ma, L., Liu, J., Zhuang, Z., Huang, Q. & Li, M. (2017). Constructing ecological networks based on habitat quality assessment: A case study of Changzhou, China. Sci. Rep., 7 (1), 46703. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep46073

García-Ontiyuelo, M., Acuña-Alonso, C., Valero, E. & Álvarez, X. (2024). Geospatial mapping of carbon estimates for forested areas using the InVEST model and Sentinel-2: A case study in Galicia (NW Spain). Sci. Total Environ., 992, 171297. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.171297

Getis, A. & Ord, J.K. (1992). The analysis of spatial association by use of distance statistics. Geogr. Anal., 24 (3), 189-206. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1538-4632.1992.tb00261.x

Guillevic, P., Göttsche, F., Nickeson, J., Hulley, G., Ghent, D., Yu, Y., Trigo, I., Hook, S., Sobrino, J.A., Remedios, J., Román, M. & Camacho, F. (2018). Land Surface Temperature Product Validation Best Practice Protocol. Version 1.1. In P. Guillevic, F. Göttsche, J. Nickeson & M. Román (Eds.). Good Practices for Satellite-Derived Land Product Validation, (pp. 58). Land Product Validation Subgroup (WGCV/CEOS). https://doi.org/10.5067/doc/ceoswgcv/lpv/lst.001

Haase, D., Schwarz, N., Strohbach, M., Kroll, F. & Seppelt, R. (2012). Synergies, trade-offs, and losses of ecosystem services in urban regions: an integrated multiscale framework applied to the Leipzig-Halle region, Germany. Ecol. Soc., 17, 22. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26269073

Hou, Y., Li, B., Müller, F., Fu, Q. & Chen, W. (2018). A conservation decision-making framework based on ecosystem service hotspot and interaction analyses on multiple scales. Sci. Total Environ., 643, 277-291. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.06.103

Jiang, W., Deng, Y., Tang, Z., Lei, X. & Chen, Z. (2017). Modelling the potential impacts of urban ecosystem changes on carbon storage under different scenarios by linking the CLUE-S and the InVEST models. Ecol. Model., 345, 30-40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2016.12.002

Kandziora, M., Burkhard, B. & Felix Müller, F. (2013). Interactions of ecosystem properties, ecosystem integrity and ecosystem service indicators—A theoretical matrix exercise. Ecol. Indic., 28, 54-78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2012.09.006

Kovacs, K., Polasky, S., Nelson, E., Keeler, B.L., Pennington, D., Plantinga, A.J. & Taff, S.J. (2013). Evaluating the return in ecosystem services from investment in public land acquisitions. PLOS ONE, 8 (6), e62202. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0062202

Lai, S., Leone, F. & Zoppi, C. (2020). Land surface temperature and land cover dynamics. A study related to Sardinia, Italy. TEMA Journal of Land Use, Mobility and Environment, 13(3), 329–351. https://doi.org/10.6092/1970-9870/7143

Li, Y., Duo, L., Zhang, M., Wu, Z. & Guan, Y. (2021). Assessment and estimation of the spatial and temporal evolution of landscape patterns and their impact on habitat quality in Nanchang, China. Land, 10 (10), 1073. https://doi.org/10.3390/land10101073

Lovell, S. & Johnston, D. (2009). Designing landscapes for performance based on emerging principles in landscape ecology. Ecol. Soc., 14 (1). https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-02912-140144

MA (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment) (2003). Ecosystems and human well-being: A framework for assessment. Washington: Island Press.

Naidoo, R., Balmford, A., Costanza, R., Fisher, B., Green, R.E., Lehner, B., Malcolm, T.R. & Ricketts, T.H. (2008). Global mapping of ecosystem services and conservation priorities. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 105, 9500, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0707823105

Natural Capital Project (n.d.). InVEST models. Retrieved from: https://naturalcapitalproject.stanford.edu/software/invest/invest-models (last accessed: 2025/05/26).

Olivera-Guerra, L.-E., Ottlé, C., Raoult, N. & Peylin, P. (2025). Assimilating ESA CCI land surface temperature into the ORCHIDEE land surface model: insights from a multi-site study across Europe. Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 261-290. https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-261-2025

Ord, J.K. & Getis, A. (1995). Local spatial autocorrelation statistics: Distributional issues and an application. Geogr. Anal., 27 (4), 286-306. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1538-4632.1995.tb00912.x

Qiu, J. & Turner, M.G. (2013). Spatial interactions among ecosystem services in an urbanizing agricultural watershed. PNAS, 110 (29), 12149-12154. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1310539110

Rachid, L., Elmostafa, A., Mehdi, M. & Hassan, R. (2024). Assessing carbon storage and sequestration benefits of urban greening in Nador City, Morocco, utilizing GIS and the InVEST model. Sustainable Futures, 7, 100171. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sftr.2024.100171

Ran, C., Wang, S., Bai, X., Tan, Q., Zhao, C., Luo, X., Chen, H. & Xi, H. (2020). Trade-offs and synergies of ecosystem services in Southwestern China. Environ. Eng. Sci., 37(10), 669-678. https://doi.org/10.1089/ees.2019.0499

Raudsepp-Hearne, C., Peterson, G.D. & Bennett, E.M. (2010). Ecosystem service bundles for analyzing tradeoffs in diverse landscapes. PNAS, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A., 107, 5242-5247. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0907284107

Reyers, B, O’Farrell, P.J., Cowling, R.M., Egoh, B.B., Le Maitre, D.C. & Vlok, J.H.J. (2009). Ecosystem services, land-cover change, and stakeholders: Finding a sustainable foothold for a semiarid biodiversity hotspot. Ecol. Soc., 14 (1), 38. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26268036

Rodríguez, J. P., T. D. Beard, Jr., E. M. Bennett, G. S. Cumming, S. Cork, J. Agard, J., Dobson, A.P. & Peterson, G.D. (2006). Trade-offs across space, time, and ecosystem services. Ecol. Soc. 11 (1), 28. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26267786

Sallustio, L., De Toni, A., Strollo, A., Di Febbraro, M., Gissi, E., Casella, L., Geneletti, D., Munafò, M., Vizzarri, M. & Marchetti, M. (2017). Assessing habitat quality in relation to the spatial distribution of protected areas in Italy. J. Environ. Manage., 201, 129-137. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2017.06.031

Sánchez-Aparicio, M., Andrés-Anaya, P., Del Pozo, S. & Lagüela, S. (2020). Retrieving land surface temperature from satellite imagery with a novel combined strategy. Remote Sensing, 12 (2), 277. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs12020277

Sharp, R., Tallis, H.T., Ricketts, T., Guerry, A.D., Wood, S.A., Chaplin-Kramer, R., Nelson, E., Ennaanay, D., Wolny, S., Olwero, N., Vigerstol, K., Pennington, D., Mendoza, G., Aukema, J., Foster, J., Forrest, J., Cameron, D., Arkema, K., Lonsdorf, E., Kennedy, C., Verutes, G., Kim, C.K., Guannel, G., Papenfus, M., Toft, J., Marsik, M., Bernhardt, J., Griffin, R., Glowinski, K., Chaumont, N., Perelman, A., Lacayo, M., Mandle, L., Hame, l P., Vogl, A.L., Rogers, L., Bierbower, W., Denu, D. & Douglass, J. (2018). InVEST User’s Guide. Stanford University; Stanford, CA, USA: University of Minnesota; Minneapolis, MN, USA: The Nature Conservancy; Arlington County, VA, USA: World Wildlife Fund; Gland, Switzerland: The Natural Capital Project.

Schröter, M. & Remme, R.P. (2016). Spatial prioritisation for conserving ecosystem services: Comparing hotspots with heuristic optimisation. Landscape Ecol., 31 (2), 431-450. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-015-0258-5

Schröter, M., Kraemer, R., Ceausu, S. & Rusch, G.M. (2017). Incorporating threat in hotspots and coldspots of biodiversity and ecosystem services. Ambio, 46, 756-768. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-017-0922-x

Spanò, M., Leronni, V., Lafortezza, R. & Gentile, F. (2017). Are ecosystem service hotspots located in protected areas? Results from a study in Southern Italy. Environ. Sci. Pol., 73, 52-60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2017.04.008

Turkelboom, F., Thoonen, M., Jacobs, S., García-Llorente, M., Martín-López, B. & Berry, P. (2016). Ecosystem services trade-offs and synergies (draft). In: M. Potschin & K. Jax (Eds.). OpenNESS Ecosystem Services Reference Book. EC FP7 Grant Agreement no. 308428.

Yang, Y. (2021). Evolution of habitat quality and association with land-use changes in mountainous areas: A case study of the Taihang Mountains in Hebei Province, China. Ecol. Indic., 129, 107967. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2021.107967

Wu, L., Sun, C. & Fan, F. (2021). Estimating the characteristic spatiotemporal variation in habitat quality using the InVEST model—A case study from Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao greater bay area. Remote Sensing, 13 (5), 1008. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13051008

Zhang, J., Wang, Y. & Li, Y. (2006). A C++ program for retrieving land surface temperature from the data of Landsat TM/ETM+ band6. Computers & Geosciences, 32 (10), 1796-1805. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cageo.2006.05.001

Zullo, F., Paolinelli, G., Fiordigigli, V., Fiorini, L., & Romano, B. (2015). Urban Development in Tuscany. Land Uptake and Landscapes Changes. TeMA - Journal of Land Use, Mobility and Environment, 8 (2), 183–202. https://doi.org/10.6092/1970-9870/2864

Downloads

Published

25-11-2025

How to Cite

Isola, F., Lai, S., Leccis, F., & Leone, F. (2025). Identifying regional green infrastructure hotspots. A comparison between the Basilicata and Campania regions, Italy. TeMA - Journal of Land Use, Mobility and Environment, (2), 151–166. https://doi.org/10.6093/1970-9870/11997

Issue

No. 2 (2025): Climate crisis and spatial planning. Green infrastructure and supply of ecosystem services

Section

SI 2.2025 Climate crisis and spatial planning

License

Copyright (c) 2025 Federica Isola, Sabrina Lai, Francesca Leccis, Federica Leone

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

  

Most read articles by the same author(s)

1 2 > >> 

Similar Articles

<< < 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 > >> 

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.