LIFE+TEN

The Life+TEN project (LIFE11/NAT/IT/000187 " TEN" - Trentino Ecological Network: a focal point for a Pan-Alpine Ecological) was developed from 2012 to 2017 by the Autonomous Province of Trento, with MUSE-Museo delle scienze di Trento as partner.
It was financed by the EU through the Life+ programme - 2007-2013 programming period.

The project aims to create a multi-purpose Ecological Network on the provincial territory, as part of the Natura 2000 Community Ecological Network established on the territory of the European Union under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive.

Rete ecologica

An ecological network is an interconnected system of areas whose purpose is to safeguard biodiversity but, in a broader sense, it is also a spatial planning strategy to be implemented through environmental requalification, restoration of ecological connectivity and socio-economic development compatible with conservation requirements.

The 'physical' elements that form an ecological network are thecore areas, rich in biodiversity that may or may not be protected in various ways (parks or reserves); thebuffer zones, identified around the core areas to mitigate negative interference from outside;ecological corridors, connecting strips between core areas that represent the key element of ecological networks as they allow species mobility and genetic exchange;stepping zones, small areas in strategic positions that facilitate the movement of species or host environments of particular value.

^{Image by William J Sutherland}

The objective of the project is to develop a new model for the medium- and long-term management of the protected areas of the Trentino Natura 2000 Network, based on the design of a multi-purpose ecological network articulated in Networks of Reserves.

The aim is to enhance Trentino's biodiversity through a decentralised management involving local communities according to the principle of "responsible subsidiarity". The Multipurpose Ecological Network will also be "open" towards the territories surrounding Trentino and will thus become an important part of the continental, Alpine and national ecological networks.

The term 'polyvalent' refers to the special attention that will be given to the 'economic' and 'social' dimensions of nature conservation.

Given the articulated and complex nature of the Natura 2000 Network sites, distributed over a wide area and embedded in a landscape shaped by human activities and often in close ecological relationship with these, the management model proposed by Life+TEN is based on three fundamental principles

• integration
• empowerment
• participation

1) archiving and analysis of floristic, vegetational and faunistic data on habitats and species of community interest present in the provincial territory by means of a relational database on Natura 2000.

2) drafting of 5 guideline documents

• Guidelines for the drafting of Management Plans for Networks of Reserves; ,
• Guidelines for the monitoring of habitats and species of community interest,
• Guidelines for the management of habitats of community interest
• Guidelines for the management of wet woods and bed vegetation,
• Action plans for the management of certain 'focal' species (birds and amphibians).

3) drafting of action plans for at least 9 homogeneous areas of Natura 2000 sites, with the quantification of long-term management costs, providing useful data for the definition of a regional PAF (strategic multiannual planning tool) in line with the provisions of art. 8 of the Habitats Directive

4) constitution of 6 Networks of Reserves established according to Provincial Law 11/2007.

5) implementation of 12 demonstration actions for the active protection of priority species and habitats and for the fight against allochthonous species.

6) realisation of 2 integrated socio-economic development projects aimed at demonstrating how the ecosystem services produced by the Natura 2000 network can form the basis of a local agricultural and tourism development plan, which - in turn - will co-finance the active protection actions of species and habitats.

7) Establishment of 2 provincial working tables on Natura 2000-agriculture-tourism, and at least 3 interregional tables for the sustainable management and enhancement of border SCIs/SPAs.

Preparatory actions

They aim to learn about the ecological state of the territory, the distribution of target species, their conservation status and the main threats to which they are subject, in order to create the knowledge base necessary for planning specific conservation and protection actions.

Concrete conservation actions - planning phase

The aim is to plan territorial organisation in order to develop a new and more effective environmental conservation model, through the identification of Homogeneous Territorial Areas (ATO) from the point of view of ecological and administrative characteristics in order to optimise the network management of Natura 2000 sites.

Concrete conservation actions - participation phase

The aim is to involve administrators, stakeholders and citizenship, in order to plan shared active conservation and connectivity actions (Inventories) in each ATO.

Concrete conservation actions - integration phase

They aim to integrate conservation with development policies as a prerequisite for managing Natura 2000 through responsible subsidiarity. This is the core phase of the project, represented by the establishment of the Networks of Reserves, which give technical and institutional implementation to the multipurpose Ecological Network through the participation of local institutions and communities both in the conservation process and in the planning of sustainable territorial development.

Demonstration actions

Aimed at experimenting through "model" actions to conserve species and habitats of Community interest by improving their naturalistic and ecological quality and enhancing the territory

Monitoring actions

These aim to monitor in order to assess and possibly improve the effectiveness of the conservation and socio-economic development actions implemented by the project.

PSP Provincial Development Programme of the 14th Legislature

The Autonomous Province of Trento, as lead partner, was allocated a budget of euro 1,359,668.00, while MUSE-Museo delle Scienze of Trento, as associated beneficiary, was allocated euro 368,854.00

European co-financing amounting to euro 862,014.00 (49.87%).

Main Results

• Creation of an open access database that collects information on the distribution of species and habitats of Community interest in the territory of the province of Trento.
• Elaboration of guidelines for the conservation of focal species including: the yellow-bellied toad, crayfish, red-backed shrike, corncrake, rock partridge, black grouse and the management of priority habitats such as meadows, wet woods and riverbank vegetation.
  The following have also been drawn up guidelines for the management of habitats of community interest, guidelines for monitoring habitats and species of community and local importance e guidelines for the drafting of Reserve Network Management Plans;
• Implementation of thegeneral inventory of active protection actions and restoration of ecological connectivity, a tool for the medium-long term management of the Natura 2000 Network sites in Trentino;
• Planning and implementation of 10 Networks of Reservescomponents of the Provincial Ecological Network;
• Design and implementation of "model" conservation actions (see above, actions C.6 to C.19) for the safeguard, restoration, reintroduction of species of Community interest, restoration of degraded habitats and elimination of alien species. The success of these actions has been confirmed, in most cases, by an increase in the number of individuals of target species, an increase in the number of populations indicating ecosystem quality and their density; a decrease in the mortality rate of individuals by means of actions to protect against electrocution; a decrease in the density and growth of alien and pest species;
• Awareness-raising on the Natura 2000 theme, through the production of dissemination materials aimed at the general public and sector operators; organisation of participatory meetings with local communities, local operators and the specialised public aimed at sharing project actions and for information purposes; organisation of training and refresher courses aimed at local school teachers and operators.

The post-project

It is expected that the diffuse and participatory management model of the Ecological Network, proposed by the Life+Ten project, will continue to be implemented, improved and refined in the Post-Life phase of the project.
The dynamic of decentralisation of environmental protection already successfully initiated during the project has been, and is expected to be, increasingly integrated as an innovative management and social tool for the sustainable development of the territory. In the course of the project, in fact, a part of the actions was specifically dedicated to the definition of a strategy to continue the participatory development and protection work started by Life+Ten.