LIFE GESTIRE (01/10/2012 – 30/09/2015)
Background
The creation of the terrestrial part of the Natura 2000 network is almost complete in the EU 27 Member States. The biggest challenge to face in the next decade is ensuring the protection and management of designated areas, in particular through the implementation of conservation measures under Article 6 (1) of the Habitats Directive. The goal is to restore and / or maintain the favorable conservation status of the habitats and species protected by the two EU directives Nature (Birds and Habitats). This objective is an essential part of the program of the European Union post-2010 on the conservation of biodiversity (European Biodiversity Strategy to 2020 and Vision for 2050).
To meet the needs of the Natura 2000 network a more strategic approach at national / regional level (financing plans and national / regional programs with clear objectives, priorities and measures) needs to be adopted. It is also necessary to identify the contribution from EU and national (public and private) financial instruments. These programs should cover large portions of the network (eg. all sites in a region) and contain all the elements needed to create a long-term capacity in terms of management, restoration of a satisfactory state of sites, habitats and species: The programs should also possess the characteristics necessary to ensure the connectivity and functionality of the network thus including elements such as “green infrastructure” and ecosystem services.
Project description
The project GESTIRE aims to contribute to the achievement of these goals through the development and implementation of the strategy for managing the entire Natura 2000 network of the Lombardy Region, consisting of 183 SCIs and 66 SPAs, for a total of 241 Natura 2000 sites.
The call LIFE + 2011 offered for the first time the opportunity to develop programs for the management and restoration of the network at regional level and to produce a Prioritised Actions Framework (PAF). GESTIRE represents a pilot project, first of this kind in Europe, to be replicated in other contexts.
Specific project objectives are to:
The objective of the project GESTIRE is to produce a plan for the long term capacity to restore and manage sites, habitats and species at a favorable status, taking into consideration all potential sources of EU, national and regional funding and establishing a list of priority actions to be carried out in the next decade.
The two main outputs of the project are: completing management planning for the 241 Natura 2000 sites of the Lombardia Region and establishing a Prioritised Actions Framework for the entire regional Natura 2000 network.
This will be achieved through:
- Creation of an integrated Natura 2000 group, including members of the different regional directorates (i.e. agriculture, tourism, transport etc), scientific experts, representatives of stakeholder groups, NGOs.
- Collection and study of all documents produced in relation to managing Natura 2000 sites in Lombardy.
- Production of an estimate of the socio-economic value of the Natura 2000 network, taking into consideration all the documents produced at world (i.e.TEEB), at EU (i.e. Financing Natura 2000: Cost estimate and benefits of Natura 2000”) and at national level (i.e. the Netherlands. Scotland, France etc).
- Analysis of the green jobs connected with Natura 2000 and identification of a proposal to create new incentives.
- Production of management measures for Natura 2000 sites that do not have a management plan and for measures needed to connect the regional sites.
- Development of a financial plan for the management of the Lombard Natura 2000 network between 2014 and 2020.
- Identification of guidelines for conservation actions in the Natura 2000 network by citizens and business.
- Production of a programmatic document for the management of the Lombardy Natura 2000 network.
- Identification of priority actions and formulation of the regional Priority Action Framework.
- Production of a scientific monitoring plan.
- Production of a strategic communication plan for the next decade, which will include indications for business and citizens on how to contribute to the long term conservation of Natura 2000.
- Press office, during the project’s operation, at regional, national and EU level, in order to inform competent administrations and the general public of the significance of the ongoing activities.
Go to the project file in the European Commission database.
Partners
Regione Lombardia
Ente Regionale per i Servizi all’Agricoltura e alle Foreste (ERSAF)
Fondazione Lombardia per l’Ambiente (FLA)
LIPU
Comunità Ambiente
Centro Turistico Studentesco e giovanile (CTS)