Evaluation of specialisation in cultivation and of the heterogeneity of landscapes by means of the spring NDVI.

摘要

The article addresses questions of agricultural specialisation and heterogeneity with special reference to Italy. Here, as elsewhere in Europe, there has been a tendency towards agricultural intensification in the plains, accompanied by the abandonment of marginal lands in the hills, marshes, etc. This situation is being given increased attention currently because of concerns over reductions in biodiversity and how to ensure the sustainability of agriculture in the future. In Italy, the abandonmentof hill land has led to soil erosion and water loss. The introduction goes on to explain the significance of new modes of data collection (e.g. satellite imaging) and analysis in calculating environmental assets and the threats to them. The second section describes in general terms the NDVI (normalized difference vegetation index) system of calculating agronomic statistics, while the third section demonstrates it with reference to particular models based on actual situations of environmental disadvantage in Italy. The main conclusion is that such methods may be able to overcome the traditional practice of basing farming decisions in depressed areas on cultural and socioeconomic factors rather than the actual physical characteristics of the local environment. The recent reform of the CAP, which recognises the principle of subsidiarity and therefore the localisation of many functions, will be of benefit in this regard.