Established on 12 July 1993, the Foreste Casentinesi, Monte Falterona and Campigna National Park, in the Apennine mountains, conserves one of Italy’s largest old-growth beech forests. It is a recognised UNESCO World Heritage Site and is also recognised with a European Diploma for Protected Areas.
IUCN’s Green list is the most important international certification of excellence concerning governance of protected areas. It’s with great honour that we acknowledge that three Italian national parks (Arcipelago Toscano, Foreste Casentinesi and Gran Paradiso) met this goal. This is an outcome in which the Ministry has invested and it shows the value of our precious natural capital, not only in terms of biodiversity protection, but also around its overall management.
Conservation
Good governance
Community benefits
The Institution was established on 12 July 1993, governed by public law and supervised by the Ministry of the Environment. The primary task of the institution is to safeguard the naturalistic value of the park and to promote sustainable activities carried out in it. In particular, the purpose of the Park is the protection and reconstruction of hydraulic and hydrogeological balances as well as the conservation of animal or plant species.
The National Park covers an area of about 36,000 ha, equally divided between Emilia Romagna and Tuscany, including the provinces of Forlì-Cesena, Arezzo, and Florence. It extends along the Tuscan-Romagna Apennine ridge, descending steeply along the parallel valleys of the Romagna side and more gradually in the Tuscan side, which presents itself with softer slopes, up to the wide valley bottom formed by the Arno. The Romagna side includes the territories of the municipalities of Bagno di Romagna, Santa Sofia, Premilcuore, Portico-San Benedetto and Tredozio. On the Tuscan side are the Casentino municipalities of Poppi, Bibbiena, Chiusi della Verna, Pratovecchio Stia and, finally, those of the Mugello villages of San Godenzo and Londa
Outcome of EAGL Vote on Site
Consensus
EAGL Summary
Foreword The application for the registration in the Green List of the Foreste Casentinesi National Park (Italy) was discussed by team of EAGL Italy on November 25, 2020 during a remote meeting (due to Covid-19 health restrictions). In order to establish whether the criteria of the GL Standard have been achieved, each of the 50 indicators were assessed on the basis of: • the provided documents reported by the candidate on Compass platform; • the integrations requested by EAGL to the candidate on some indicators to analyse with more attention; • the contribution received from the stakeholders consultation • the evaluation obtained by the EAGL during the site visit run on 2-4 November. The EAGL members who were not able to participate to the remote meeting were consulted individually and their declaration of vote, have been performed by email.
Component 1: Good Governance The discussion began by taking into account the indicators forming part of this component for which documentary integration had been requested. Particular attention was paid to indicator 1.1.6, for which there still appears to be a lack of documentation proving the local community’s acceptance of governance mechanisms and structures. During the site visit, however, it was possible to observe how the Park Authority is inserted in a old historical context where the forestry culture is central and although the Park Authority is recently established, behind it there is properly a territory with a well-rooted and recognized culture of forest conservation. From the meeting with stakeholders it emerges that the Park Community seems active and driving and contacts with local economic realities are good also thanks to the rather small size of the National Park. The projects with the realities of the territory are on small-scale and there seems to be a lack of real and medium-long-term planning of comparison with civil society perhaps also due to reduced number of structural staff of the Park (19 units). No critical issues have emerged since there is a focus of the Park to addressing to the residents and from local economies regarding the actions of the Park. However, the Park Authority is suggested to improve planning and make the process of civil society involvement transparent. This will allow the Park to explicitly demonstrate how it works in the process of land involvement and planning. Based on the evidences produced by the candidate, the integrations requested and the site visit observations, EAGL considers that the site meets all three criteria of the component.
Component 2: Sound Design and Planning The integrative notes required for some of the indicators in this component were satisfactory: the annual reports prepared for the UNESCO Commission show the conservation status of the site, and the threats to natural values and related ecosystem services can be found in the general reports on Natura 2000 Network sites (overlap almost all of the National Park). The environmental projects discussed during the site visit are in the medium to long term more than long-term but this does not affect the conservation objective. A project worthy of note is the one that the Park Authority has addressed to the new local generations to make them ready for the next economic challenges: there is in fact a tendency of the Park Authority to prepare more and more towards sustainable tourism. Based on the evidences produced by the candidate, the integration requested and the site visit observations, EAGL considers that the site meets all four criteria of the component.
Component 3: Effective Management Also for this component began with the analysis of the indicators for which integration was requested and in particular focused on the 3.1.4, related to the Park staff that according to the Park Authority is under dimensioned and this was also noticed during the site visit. There are 19 employees in total flanked by the Forestry Corp of Carabinieri, the Carabinieri of the Biodiversity Service and experts in the various disciplines as well as a good component of volunteers. All this serves to meet the needs of the institution but it is suggested if possible to verify the opportunity to insert more professional figures on individual projects financed in order to have a strengthening of qualified personnel to be dedicated to nature conservation objectives. With regard to criterion 3.6, it was confirmed during the site visit the Park’s intention to increase the tourist flow in the coming years to develop the local economy. Among the information provided it emerges that there is a process started by the Tourist Promotion Agency Tuscany and Emilia Romagna Regions that has as its target project the increase from 180 thousand to 475 thousand overnight stays. According to the conservation management and tourism, there is no apparently conflict with the conservation activities because there is a consolidate planned strategy of the park. To manage this increase in tourist pressure. it is suggested to maintain monitoring actions and impact studies on the territory, as well as to allocate dedicated personnel and to enforce the maintenance of a good pathways net and facilities to support visitors. A small criticality found during the inspection seems to be that of the insufficient enhancement of the peculiarities of the Protected Area. The Park Authority does not make the most of the potential visibility of belonging to the network of UNESCO sites, the European network of Natura 2000 network sites or, in the future, the Green List. A greater effort should be made to communicate externally its values and the actions taken to maintain them. In addition, the communication part on the values of the Park should also be strengthened to ask the visitor for the necessary attention in the use of the territory. It is therefore suggested to integrate the Park communication plan by highlighting the importance in national and international contexts of biodiversity values (UNESCO, Natura 2000 Network, Green List). Based on the evidences produced by the candidate, the integration requested and the site visit observations, EAGL considers that the site meets all seven criteria of the component.
Component 4: Successful Conservation Outcomes Following a specific request during the site visit, the Park has integrated on COMPASS positive conservation interventions dedicated to endangered species of amphibians and other taxa units with new documentation. Studies for the purpose of evaluating ecosystem services are still in their inception phase (a few papers), but collaborations are underway with some universities for this purpose. Based on the evidences produced by the candidate, the integration requested and the site visit observations, EAGL considers that the site meets all three criteria of the component. Conclusions and Decision EAGL Italy underlines the outstanding efforts of the FCNP to conserve nature, maintain traditions, support sustainable economic grow and preliminary evidence to support analysis and benefits from ecosystem services. Due to the initial phase of the evaluation of ecosystem services an Action Plan to declare future actions, milestones and threshold levels on this item has been asked to be prepared in the next 10-12 months (see uploaded file named “PNFC Action Plan”). The work done by the Park to respond to the GL Standard is experienced by all the Park staff (managers, researchers, guides, volunteers) as a process for improvement, not a point of arrival but a way to work also in the future on a daily basis in the sense of efficiency and effectiveness. Based on these evidences and the documents analysed, the experts of EAGL Italy positively support the candidacy of FCNP to the Green List.
Out of 11 EAGL members, 11 voted, unanimous, in favour.
Reviewer Summary
The Site has provided detailed information in relation to compliance with Green List Standard requirements. The relevant documentation is available on Compass. The EAGL requested additional information on several aspects, which the Foreste Casentinesi National Park provided. Some of the aspects relating to additional evidence the EAGL requested were also verified during the site visit. With regards to compliance evaluation relating to Component 4 of the GL standard, conclusions were reached and a positive decision was taken, based partly on systems and processes, also on studies that are currently taking place but, in some cases, still in the absence of confirmed outcomes. In order to follow up on the aspects where full compliance with the Green List standard could not be detected, the EAGL requested that the Foreste Casentinesi National park prepares an Action Plan. The stakeholder meeting organized during the site visit by the designated EAGL members was conducted in confidence, with a very good level of participation of a wide range of local stakeholders. The quorum for decision was confirmed and also absence of Conflict of Interests (CoI) was confirmed for the EAGL members responsible for the evaluation and also for the EAGL decision-making meeting.The EAGL made a positive decision, unanimously. The EAGL had some issues with regards to some members not being operational and not being very responsive. Base on a request from the EAGL Chair, three EAGL members formally left the Italian EAGL during November 2020. With regards to the indicator found by the EAGL not to be in full compliance with GL requirements (4.2.2), the Foreste Casentinesi National Park presented in February 2021 an Action Plan. The Italian EAGL will check the implementation of the proposed Action Plan according to the stated timeline.