The Region approves new law on parks and protected areas

From today, the system of protected areas in the Region (24 regional parks, 13 of which are natural parks, 66 are nature reserves, 33 are natural monuments, 101 local parks of supra-municipal interest and 242 sites of the “Nature Network 2000”), will refer to a new law, which was approved by the Regional Council, with 41 votes in favour, 22 against, and no abstentions.

The aim of the law is to simplify management (which today is entrusted to 80 managing authorities) and encourage voluntary unification among the existing parks. To this end, 9 homogeneous, reference macro-areas have been introduced, which may merge.

“For Lombardy Region, this is a very important law because it affects 25% of the entire territory,” said Emanuele Monti, the Lega Nord speaker from Varese, “and for this reason, we’ve followed a detailed procedure, speaking with about 200 interested people. Starting with the text, which had been well written by the Regional Council, we added a series of amendments, which modify and give even more meaning to this measure, whose aim is to simplify management of the territory in the interest of final users, the people of Lombardy, and those who run agricultural businesses in the protected areas. In addition to that, more resources will be given to the parks, which will be the driving force of this law, and the same level of protection of Regional Law No. 86/1983, which is an example for protected areas throughout Europe, will be maintained.”

The aim of the law, which is entitled “Reorganisation of the Lombard system of managing and safeguarding protected regional areas, and others ways of protecting the territory”, is to consolidate the conservation and promotion of the natural heritage and landscape, to increase the number of sustainable development models for man’s activities and complete the regional ecological network.

The approved laws also include the one that, with reference to the agricultural damage caused by wild species in the reserves and nature parks, allocates regional compensation, provided that interventions to contain the animal species responsible for the damage have actually been carried out. The go-ahead has also been given to an amendment that bans the building of certain systems that recover or even dispose of waste (industrial activities), “except where these operations have already been authorised.”

The identification of the nine macro-areas was done by taking into consideration portions of the regional territory that contain one or more areas of territorial interest, in preparation for progressive unification of the areas. The local parks of supra-municipal interest can take part in unification processes.

These are the macro areas: the first contains the parks of Campo dei Fiori, Pineta, Spina Verde, Groane, Valle del Lambro, Montevecchia and Valle del Curore, and Bosco delle Querce; the second contains Grigna Settentrionale and Monte Barro; the third, Orobie Valtellinesi and Orobie Bergamasche; the fourth, Alto Garda Bresciano, Adamello and the Lombard part of the Stelvio National Park; the fifth contains the Mincio National Park; the sixth, Oglio Nord, Oglio Sud and Monte Netto; the seventh, Adda Nord, Adda Sud, Colli di Bergamo and Serio; the eighth, Parco Agricolo Sud Milano and Nord Milano; and the ninth, the Ticino Valley Regional Park.