In the last decades desertification processes have being affecting the territory of Campania. In fact the Region is subject to longer and longer periods of aridity in summer and heavy rain in spring and autumn, often causing dramatic effects.
The National Park of Vesuvio, who carried out for Regione Campania the pilot action in the frame of the Project DesertNet, has brought to the Project a long experience in ecological engineering.
From 1997 up to date the National Park of Vesuvio has designed and built ecological engineering structures for over 2 million euros, using techniques and methods already known in the Mediterranean countries especially in Central Europe and in the Alps and specialised in the use of both alive materials and plant species commonly not cited in scientific studies.
The buildings that have been realised in the park area in the last five years show that the used techniques can be applied, in the Mediterranean context, also to substitute waterproof structures (such as conglomerate cement and asphalt) in order to apply plant technology for water purifying in the lakes of Vesuvio where rain and urban waste water are gathered and mixed.

Activities in the frame of the Project DesertNet
"Interventions and strategies to recover degradated soils"

The general objective of the pilot action, carried out by the National Park of Vesuvio, has been to deepen knowledge on the technologies that can be applied to the fight against desertification, by the observation and evaluation on the field of ecological engineering actions. The main end is to find out the useful elements to mitigate desertification into ecological engineering works, both already built up and specially made, by means of a set of physical, geologic and biologic indicators. To reach this general objective two specific objectives must be attended:
1. Observation of the effects of plant species seeding in bare surfaces: identification of grass species best fit to grow in arid conditions and characterization of technologies/actions to favour plant growing up through ecological engineering techniques;
2. Observation of transplant methods used for ecological engineering works: detection of the elements that have showed to be able to have a positive impact on growing up of plant species in engineering works.
 
Contacts:
Carlo Bifulco - Phone no.: 0039 081 7710912 - Fax: 0039 081 7718215 - E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it -
Web site: http://www.vesuviopark.it/PROMOZIONE/mediterre2.htm
Gino Menegazzi - Phone no.: 0039 081 7710911 - Fax: 0039 081 7718215 -  E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it