Nature-based Solutions in vineyards of Oltrepò Pavese (Northern Italy): state of the art and analysis of their effectiveness in shallow landslide mitigation

Land degradation, e.g. shallow landslides, with correlated soil loss and nutrient loss, is a significant environmental problem for the agroecosystems, especially where farming is carried out on sloping soil (e.g. vineyards, olive groves, etc.).Due to climate change and consequent increase on extreme weather events, these processes are likely to become more widespread, thus leading to significant land abandonment.Another factor affecting land degradation concerns soil tillage by agricultural machinery, which, if uncontrolled, can accelerate the development of these processes.Land degradation is also dangerous for rural communities because of its rapidity of initiation and development and the lack of warning signs for its detection. It is therefore necessary to apply in agroecosystems effective solutions for disaster risk reduction (DRR) which, at the same time, are of low environmental impact and economically sustainable. Nature-based Solutions (NbS) can help address all these challenges as they are widely recognized by the scientific community and are often funded by countries or the union of countries, such as the European Union or the United Nations. However, NbS are still poorly applied by farmers and local governments, favoring gray infrastructure measures that are sometimes ineffective at achieving land degradation neutrality.

The aim of this work is to produce an inventory of the Nature-based Solutions applied in vineyards in an Apennine area of Northern Italy in order to verify, at the slope scale, their effectiveness in the mitigation of shallow landslides. The study area is represented by a sector of Oltrepò Pavese, one of the most important agricultural and viticultural regions in Italy.In the last 15 years, more than 2000 shallow landslides were triggered in consequence of intense rainfall events, with a density of distribution which reached more than 40% of the territory cultivated with grapevines. The work is carried out in the context of a PhD project, financed with PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan) and cofounded by seven municipalities, stakeholders of the project. The final aim of the PhD projectis to identify the most suitable NbS for the studied area, in terms of technical and economical suitability. The scientific research results will be incorporated within the municipal planning tools and rural police regulation in order to prevent shallow landslides.